Austrian "Dungeon Dad" Josef Fritzl has been convicted of homicide for the death in captivity of one of the seven children he fathered with his daughter.
Fritzl, who imprisoned his daughter in the basement of his home for 24 years, was sentenced to life imprisonment in a secure psychiatric facility.
In addition to his conviction for homicide, or "murder by neglect," in German, Fritzl was convicted of enslavement, rape, incest, forced imprisonment and coercion
He accepted the verdict and waived his right to appeal. His sentence was the maximum punishment allowed by law.
Fritzl had already pleaded guilty to all charges against him, including homicide for the death of the infant boy.
CTV's London Bureau Chief Tom Kennedy told Â鶹´«Ã½net that Fritzl, who had originally pleaded not-guilty to some of the charges, changed his plea Wednesday as part of a deal with prosecutors.
"The sentence is life, but not in a prison. It is in a psychiatric hospital. We heard indirectly that one of the conditions for Fritzl giving up the fight and co-operating with the prosecutors was that he would be sent to a psychiatric institution, not a prison," Kennedy said.
"He appears to have his wish and the prosecutors and the family have their wish as well, that this man will forever be locked up. He will never again be a free man."
The 73-year-old initially only pleaded guilty to incest and false imprisonment but then, on Wednesday, admitted guilt to all of charges against him.
Still, under the Austrian judicial system, the jury still had to agree that Fritzl was guilty of the charges, which included negligent homicide, enslavement, coercion and rape.
"I regret it with all my heart. ... I can't make it right anymore," Fritzl told the court on Thursday.
Fritzl's lawyer, Rudolf Mayer, told jurors that his client decided to admit guilt after noticing his daughter, Elisabeth, had made a secret visit to the courtroom.
"It was a meeting of eyes that changed his mind," Mayer told jurors, according to The Times Online.
"Josef Fritzl recognized that Elisabeth was in court and, from this point on, you could see Josef Fritzl going pale and he broke down."
Now 42, Elisabeth was imprisoned in a cellar Fritzl built underneath his house for 24 years.
Fritzl punished his daughter by shutting off electricity in her cellar, which was infested with rats.
Prosecutor Christiane Burkheiser called for the maximum punishment for Fritzl, who is on trial in St. Poelten, west of Vienna.
"Don't be duped like Elisabeth was 24 years ago," Burkheiser told the court.
Fritzl faces a murder charge because one of the seven children he had with his daughter died in infancy.
Officials say the baby -- a male twin born in April 1996 -- may have survived if Fritzl had arranged for medical care.
"Any amateur could have determined that the child was in the throes of death for 66 hours," Burkheiser said.
Meanwhile, Eva Plaz, a lawyer for Elisabeth, argued that Fritzl's sentence shouldn't be reduced simply because he pleaded guilty.
She said his pleas "were not a confession."
Mayer argued that Fritzl did not commit murder. He said his client was responsible for his actions but that he suffered from "psychological abnormalities."
Elisabeth and her children, ranging in age from 6 to 20, stayed at a psychiatric clinic under heavy security during the trial.
With files from The Associated Press
