Originally intended as a pleasurable way to unwind and make new acquaintances, online games ultimately proved fatal for Gabriel Kuhn, who, at only 12 years of age, encountered fellow gaming pal Daniel Petry, who would end up committing the most inhumane and insanely vile act towards the former.
Several years have passed and questions are still left unanswered regarding the circ*mstances of this incident and the whereabouts of Kuhn’s murderer, who was given what many have described as a light and unfair judgment for such a notorious crime. To date, the whereabouts of Petry remains a major topic for discussion, and his heinous crime will never be erased from the minds of Brazilians.
For the sake of readers who may not be familiar with the story of the murder of Gabriel Kuhn 16 years ago, let’s revisit the story.
NOTE: Reader’s discretion is advised.
Table of Content hide
1Who is Gabriel Kuhn?
2What happened to Gabriel Kuhn?
3Gabriel Kuhn and Daniel Petry
Who is Gabriel Kuhn?
Gabriel Guillermo Kuhn was a bright young boy who lived in Santa Catarina, Brazil. He was a kid who loved video games. Kuhn was only 12 years old when he was brutally murdered by Daniel Petry, a close friend of his and a fellow resident of his neighbourhood that shared the victim’s love for video games.
Kuhn met Petry via an online game called “Tibia“, and they both developed a friendship over their love for games.
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What happened to Gabriel Kuhn?
In the fall of 2007, a gripping and tragic story unfolded in Brazil involving two young friends whose lives would never be the same again. Petry, a 16-year-old boy from Santa Catarina, was accused of a heinous crime that shocked the community. The victim, 12-year-old Kuhn, was brutally murdered in what could only be described as a depraved and savage act.
Kuhn had asked Petry for 20,000 Tibia currency, a virtual currency used in the game they played, to purchase various items from the online store. Initially, Petry had agreed to lend him the money but asked Kuhn to repeat his request before he could receive the funds. Little did anyone know that this seemingly innocent transaction would have fatal consequences.
As time passed, Petry grew increasingly frustrated with Kuhn’s lack of repayment. On the day of the supposed refund, Petry logged onto the private server that Kuhn had set up for them to play together, intending to retrieve his Tibia currency. However, to his surprise, Kuhn had disconnected Petry from the server with no refund.
Unable to contain his rage, Petry called his mother, Nova Trento, at 9:30 am on the day of the crime, seeking information on her arrival time. Later that day, he decided to visit Kuhn to confront him in person, using the guise of “ironing things out” between them.
On getting to his abode, Kuhn had politely allowed Petry in, a gesture that would eventually result in his untimely end. As he entered the room, Petry quickly locked the door behind him and immediately launched a brutal attack on Kuhn, beating him to a pulp.
At this point, Kuhn was in a severe condition due to the brutal beating unleashed on him by Petry. Despite this, Daniel Petry did not stop there; he sexually violated his victim, sodomising Kuhn, who was much smaller than he was, while the poor teenager lay brutalised. After committing the dastardly act, Kuhn was brave enough to tell Petry that he would tell his mother all that had been done to him.
At this moment, Petry decided to take drastic measures to silence his victim permanently. He forcibly removed electrical cords and tightly wrapped them around the neck of the 12-year-old Kuhn, strangling him until he was motionless.
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One would assume that this horrific act was the worst possible outcome, but Petry’s heinous behaviour was far from over. Assuming Kuhn was dead, he located a saw and began slicing his body to make it lighter and fit it into a small crawl space in the hallway. As he sliced his victim’s body, the unimaginable occurred: Kuhn suddenly woke up and began screaming in unbearable agony.
Oddly enough, Petry was amused by the sounds of Kuhn’s screams, and his wicked grin widened as he continued to sever the torso of the 12-year-old Kuhn, killing him in the process.
Like something from a horror movie, Petry carved Tibia symbols into Kuhn’s body and tried to hide it by stuffing it in the crawlspace. On discovering that it still did not fit into the narrow entrance, he abandoned the 12-year-old’s severed body in the hallway and fled the scene.
Kuhn’s brother returned home a few hours later, only to discover the gruesome sight of his younger sibling’s decapitated body. He screamed for help and alerted neighbours, who then summoned the police.
Soon after the police got wind of the online argument between Petry and Kuhn, the killer-teenager was detained shortly after. After getting questioned by the police, Petry unhesitantly confessed to the murder of Kuhn giving full details of how he carried out the criminal act without an ounce of remorse. The accused further claimed that Kuhn was a crook who tricked him.
In a supposed last communication of Petry, he was quoted as saying ;
“Gabriel cheated and I will make him pay for all his actions; as he said that there is Heaven and Hell, there in Hell is he; I will find him there and take revenge again.”
After Petry was detained, Kuhn’s autopsy was released and showed that the victim’s rectum was sexually violated. When asked about this act, Petry admitted that he had sodomised Kuhn, prompting the police officers to ask if he was a hom*osexual, a question to which Petry was triggered. He flared up and angrily denied that he was hom*osexual.
As the story drew national attention in Brazil, the public was hopeful that justice would be served; the teenage killer would either be confined behind bars for life or face the death penalty. But in a strange twist of events, Petry was charged as a minor and only sentenced to three years in a Juvenile correctional facility.
Gabriel Kuhn and Daniel Petry
Daniel Felipe Petry was born in Brazil in 1991. He was a native of Blumenau, Santa Catarina. Reports claim that Petry grew up in a toxic environment, a contributing psychological factor that caused him to develop violent tendencies. His parents went as far as to have him attend psychiatric evaluation tests. Nothing, however, was determined to be wrong with him as he discontinued his treatment and checked out of the hospital.
Petry was said to have had an immense hatred for doctors and hospitals and never spoke during his psychiatric intervention sessions. He also stopped attending school, which gave his peers and teachers the impression that he was probably getting psychological help, but that was never the case.
Petry spent most of his time playing the game Tibia and became so proficient that he often interacted with fellow players online as they had fun. Kuhn was one of the online friends he made while playing the game, and they built a relationship as avid gamers and residents of the same neighbourhood. Who would have believed that something meant to elicit happiness within young teenagers would result in one of Brazil’s most disturbing and strange murder stories of all time?
The unsolved puzzle in the aftermath of Kuhn’s brutal murder is the enigma of Petry’s fate. Despite being sentenced to only three years in juvenile prison for his heinous crime, Petry’s ultimate destiny remains shrouded. After his release from juvenile detention in 2010, he disappeared, leaving no trace of his whereabouts and prompting wild speculation regarding his current identity and location.
As the years have passed, rumours and theories about Petry’s life after prison have multiplied, each more fantastical than the last. Some suggest that he might have been consumed by guilt and taken his own life, unable to bear the weight of his horrific actions. Others have speculated that he may have transformed himself, adopting a new identity and pursuing a respectable career as a lawyer or businessman, cunningly hiding in plain sight.
Another school of thought maintains that Petry fled the country, seeking refuge in some far-off land where he could live out his days in obscurity. There are even those who believe that he has started a family of his own, living under an assumed name and shielded from the prying eyes of the world.
The truth behind Petry’s disappearance remains a mystery, a puzzle that has yet to be solved and may never be fully understood. His story is a haunting reminder of the depths of human depravity and the shocking ease with which a person can vanish into the shadows, resulting in unanswered questions and a trail of devastation.
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