Isabella Mueller (crime writer)
The third woman in the history of the Czech Republic to be sentenced to life imprisonment was the peroxide-blonde Jaroslava Fabiánová, who in her youth could easily have passed for Barbie’s sister. Between 1981 and 2003, she murdered four men. As her modus operandi resembled that of the American serial killer Aileen Wuornos, she was dubbed ‘the Czech Aileen Wuornos’ by the media. But who was this woman who hacked her victims to death with a butcher’s cleaver or slaughtered them with a knife as if in a frenzy? Jaroslava, who was born on 21 August 1965 in Děčín, did not have a happy childhood. She fell victim to sexual violence at an early age. When her parents divorced, Jaroslava was just 13 years old. From then on, she had to fend for herself, as her parents couldn’t care less about her. At the age of 16, she joined a Roma gang. From then on, Jaroslava earned a living through prostitution and theft. That very same year, Jaroslava killed for the first time. Her victim was 78-year-old Wladimir Z., who refused to pay for Jaroslava’s sexual favours. Wladimir paid for this with his life, as Jaroslava killed him with a hammer and a kitchen knife. She had also stabbed him in the face with a sewing awl. Just one day later, Jaroslava was in handcuffs, charged with various burglaries and the murder of Wladimir. As she was still a minor, Jaroslava was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment. After four years and nine months, Jaroslava was released from prison. She worked briefly as a signalman for the state-owned railway company České dráhy, until she went off the rails again and began working as a prostitute. In 1996, Jaroslava attempted to rob a Hungarian tourist, spiking his beer with a hypnotic drug. However, the dose was too strong, and the Hungarian man died. Jaroslava was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment and a five-year ban on visiting the Czech capital, Prague. She served her sentence at Pardubice Women’s Prison until she was released on parole in 2001. Once free, Jaroslava resumed her criminal activities. On 23 February 2001, she stole a mobile phone, which she sold to a pawnbroker in Prague despite her ban on entering the city. As she had sold it using her identity card, the police were quickly onto her trail. Jaroslava was sentenced to one year’s imprisonment and three years’ probation. Once again at liberty, on 5 June 2003 Jaroslava killed 83-year-old Augustin K., who was found dead in his flat in the Porici district of Prague. The man had been hacked to pieces with a butcher’s cleaver. Jaroslava then dragged him into the living room, sat him on a chair and covered him with a blanket. She subsequently stole paintings and power tools worth 50,000 crowns. DNA evidence at the crime scene identified Jaroslava as the murderer. A witness also recognised her. Another witness had helped Jaroslava sell one of the paintings to a gallery for 10,000 crowns. Jaroslava herself sold one painting for 2,000 crowns; she disposed of the other because it was damaged. An arrest warrant was issued for Jaroslava. In early August, Jaroslava was admitted to hospital in Prague. After her stay in hospital, Jaroslava remained in Prague, where, on 8 August, she met 31-year-old Richard S. on a tram. The pair then went to a nightclub before Jaroslava took him back to her flat to rob him. In the bathroom, Jaroslava stabbed the young man 38 times with a knife in a blood-curdling frenzy. As her DNA was found under his fingernails, it was clear that Jaroslava had murdered this man as well. On 22 August 2003, Jaroslava was arrested and charged with two counts of murder. Jaroslava claimed that August K. had given her the paintings as a gift. As he was in poor health, she had wanted to leave him, which August had been unable to cope with. In the case of Richard S., Jaroslava merely admitted that she had intended to rob him. She denied any knowledge of his injuries. In 2005, Jaroslava Fabiánová became the third woman in the Czech Republic to be sentenced to life imprisonment, which she is serving at Troppau Prison.
