Irish citizen gets 14 years in prison for murder of American nurse on Budapest trip

The Irish man convicted of killing American nurse Mackenzie "Kenzie" Michalski during her vacation in Hungary has been sentenced to 14 years in prison.

On Thursday, July 9, the Budapest Metropolitan Court found the Irish citizen, identified only by the initials LTM, guilty of murdering the 31-year-old Portland, Oregon, nurse.

According to the Associated Press, PBS and CBS News, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison without the possibility of parole and will be deported from Hungary after completing his sentence.

Michalski disappeared during the early hours of Nov. 5, 2024, after a night out at a Budapest nightclub while vacationing in the Hungarian capital.

Her disappearance prompted a large-scale search after family and friends reported her missing through social media and a GoFundMe campaign.

Three days later, Budapest police announced they had found Michalski dead and arrested a 37-year-old Irish suspect.

Investigators later determined that Michalski had spent the evening with the suspect, visiting several nightclubs before the pair returned to his apartment.

Police questioned the man on Nov. 7, 2024, when he confessed to killing Michalski and directed officers to the location where he had disposed of her body.

According to authorities, the suspect told investigators the pair met at a nightclub, danced together and later went to his apartment, where he beat and strangled Michalski during what he described as an intimate encounter. He claimed her death was accidental.

However, investigators said the evidence pointed to an extensive effort to cover up the crime.

Police said the man cleaned his apartment after Michalski's death before placing her body inside a wardrobe.

He then purchased a suitcase, placed her body inside it and drove approximately 90 miles from Budapest to a wooded area near Lake Balaton outside the village of Szigliget, where he disposed of the suitcase.

Authorities also discovered the suspect had conducted multiple internet searches related to disposing of a body, including searches about whether pigs consume human remains, the smell of decomposing bodies, Budapest police investigations and missing-person procedures.

In addition to his prison sentence, the court ordered the convicted man to pay 2.5 million Hungarian forints (approximately $8,000) in court costs.

Once he completes his sentence, he will be expelled from Hungary, according to court officials.