WHERE IS ELISABETH FRITZL NOW TRIAL

In the years since they have received extensive psychological and medical treatment. The following day in court, Fritzl changed his pleas to guilty on all charges.įor some time after the escape, Elisabeth and her children were taken into care at a local clinic. Fritzl recognised his daughter though, and his lawyer later said that Fritzl 'went pale and broke down'. Reports say that she was in disguise while in the visitors' gallery to avoid media attention.

WHERE IS ELISABETH FRITZL NOW TRIAL

She chose to attend the second day of the criminal trial against her father. In March 2009, Fritzl was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for 15 years - which brings us to 2024.Įlisabeth managed to survive against the odds. Later, Elisabeth was allowed to return to the hospital alone to see her daughter and authorities were there waiting.Īnd that is when the then 42-year-old told police her story.įritzl was arrested and charged with rape, false imprisonment, manslaughter by negligence, and incest. Medical staff were dubious about the story and alerted authorities. There he told staff Elisabeth had run away to a religious commune years earlier, only to return with her teenage daughters to live with him. Her 19-year-old daughter had become gravely ill, and Elisabeth managed to convince Fritzl to take her to hospital. Then in 2008, Elisabeth found her chance for freedom. These services saw and heard nothing to arouse suspicion. It is believed Rosemarie was duped throughout the entire ordeal, officials saying Fritzl 'very plausibly' convinced his wife that the three kids had randomly shown up on their doorstep and needed help.įritzl and Rosemarie then became foster parents to these three kids, and were granted permission by social workers and Austrian family services to look after them. The other three children were allowed to live upstairs with Fritzl and his wife Rosemarie. In 1967, he broke into the home of a 24-year-old nurse and sexually assaulted her, holding a knife to the victim's throat. The family believed Fritzl, as Elisabeth had previously threatened to run away many times as a teenager.įritzl had a history of violent behaviour. He then held her captive so he could sexually abuse her.įritzl told his wife, Rosemarie, and their other children, that Elisabeth had run away from home to join a religious cult. On that fateful day, while Elisabeth was down there, her father held a piece of cloth soaked in ether over her mouth and nose, drugging her. A total of eight doors had to be opened before reaching the purpose-built cellar it was effectively a dungeon.įritzl kept his real plans for the cellar secret from his family. He had been building out the basement for a number of years, fit with layers of concrete and a heavy hinged door. She says her father asked her to help him fix a door in the cellar at their home in Amstetten, Lower Austria. It all began in 1984, when Elisabeth was 18. It's one of the most chilling crime stories of modern times.įor 24 years, Josef Fritzl abused his daughter, Elisabeth Fritzl, keeping her locked in a basement for much of that time. Content warning: This story includes mentions of child sexual abuse that may be distressing to some readers.

Where is elisabeth fritzl now