Kidnap father 'mad', says defence

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An alleged fantasist had descended into "pure madness" when he kidnapped his seven-year-old UK-based daughter, a US court has been told.

A defence lawyer said Christian Gerhartsreiter had suffered a "truly psychotic break" after his marriage failed and he lost custody of the girl.

But the prosecution portrayed the defendant - who called himself Clark Rockefeller - as a master manipulator.

The jury was sent home at the end of their first day of deliberations.

German-born Mr Gerhartsreiter, 48, is accused of abducting Reigh Boss, in the US, during a supervised visit.

The seven-year-old was found a week later and reunited with her mother, London-based Sandra Boss.

The defence team say Mr Gerhartsreiter's mental illness means he is not criminally responsible.

Lawyer Jeffrey Denner pointed to his client's multiple aliases and fantastic stories offered over the last three decades to people he met in the US, including claiming to be a descendant of oil tycoon John D Rockefeller.

Mr Denner said when Mr Gerhartsreiter's marriage failed and he lost custody of his daughter, it was "the perfect storm that sent him over the edge".

He became delusional, believing the child was communicating with him telepathically and asking to be rescued, Mr Denner said.

But Assistant District Attorney David Deakin said this was "not a case about madness. It's a case about manipulation".

Mr Deakin recalled an earlier allegation that, months before the kidnapping, Mr Gerhartsreiter had looked into buying a home for his daughter and himself.

He is also alleged to have hired unwitting getaway drivers for the day of the kidnapping, Mr Deakin pointed out.

"He didn't move to break the law until he believed he could get away with it," the prosecutor said.