Alfred Griner "Alferd" Packer (January 21, 1842 – April 23, 1907) was an
American prospector who confessed to
cannibalism during the winter of 1874. He and 5 other men attempted to travel through the high mountains of
Colorado during the peak of a harsh winter. When only Alfred reached civilization, he claimed that the others had killed each other for food, and confessed to having lived off the flesh of his companions during his snowbound state and to having used it to survive his trek out of the mountains two months later. After his story was called into question, he hid from justice for 9 years before being tried and convicted of
murder and sentenced to death. Packer won a retrial and was eventually sentenced to 40 years in
prison for
manslaughter. A
biopic of his life,
The Legend of Alfred Packer, was made in 1980. A more comedic take entitled
Cannibal! The Musical was made in 1993.