Otzi the Iceman is a real person, naturally mummified after his murder approximately 5,000 years ago (3350 - 3110 BC).
Since his discovery in 1991 Otzi has fascinated scientists and anthropologists around the world. Every part of him has been (carefully) examined and tested to reveal everything from his genetic profile (his paternal genetic line has been traced and still exists in Mediterranean island populations), to his gut bacteria, his illnesses and even his dietary requirements.
From Otzi's body researchers have even learned about prehistoric medicine. He had tattoos on his body which correspond to injuries, painful joints, and acupuncture lines.
The arsenic found in his body was clearly not fatal and was just the result of living millenia before chemistry was invented. Even if prehistoric man had known about elements and the danger of arsenic in food and water, there was nothing they could do about it.
A deep cut was found on Otzi's hand, which may or may not be a defense wound suffered in a knife attack just days before his murder. He was then shot on the back with an arrow, apparently beside the mountain lake where he was found.
Otzi's expensive copper-headed axe and clothes which survived with him suggest a certain amount of wealth, but nothing appeared to have been removed from the scene, making robbery an unlikely motive for the murder.
However, Otzi was found wearing only a single shoe while his belongings, including his clothes, were scattered around the surrounding area. With no explanation for the partial undressing or the scattering of belongings, the circumstances of the death remain a mystery to this day.