Born in the German town of Kassel, computer technician Meiwes led a very lonely childhood. His father was a stern man who was largely disinterested in his son. When the marriage broke up, when Meiwes was only eight, he abandoned the family, never to contact them again. He later told the court during the murder trial that Meiwes had been a well-behaved little boy but had been obsessed with the story of Hansel and Gretel, in particular the chapter about fattening up Hansel to cook and eat him.

When Meiwes' father left, it fell to his mother to become the dominant parent, who would often admonish him in public and insisted in accompanying him everywhere. Meiwes, lacking a father figure, created an imaginary brother called Franky through whom he vented his first cannibalistic thoughts, as Franky would 'listen' to Meiwes, something his mother never did.