Isabella Mueller (crime writer)
A murderous femme fatale who drove men not only mad but also robbed them of their fortunes was the Frenchwoman Madame Julie St. Joseph. Her gripping crimes in St Petersburg in the 1870s – her final haunt, where she poisoned men out of sheer greed – were recorded in the memoirs of Michael Danevitsch, the head of the Supreme Office of the Russian Police. These offer a fascinating insight into the dark life and crimes of Madame Julie St Joseph, an adventuress and serial killer. The final section of this episode, published in English in 1897, describes her ruthless deeds and Danevitsch’s courageous efforts, which ultimately brought her murderous career to an end. Madame Julie St. Joseph was a woman of about forty who captivated her victims with her seductive beauty and ultimately poisoned them out of sheer greed. She used her charm to seduce men and wrest ownership rights to their property from them. This perfidious scheme was carried out with great cunning, aided by her accomplice Vlassovsky. Once her victims were ensnared, they were poisoned with black hellebore (‘helleborus niger’). Julie had learnt the art of mixing poisons herself, and when she was unable to do so, her faithful companion Roko took on the deadly task. This man, whom she had once picked up in Spanish America, was completely under her spell and was prepared to do anything for her. Vlassovsky, once an honest and hard-working man, also succumbed to Madame Julie’s magic and became her willing tool. He quickly abandoned his moral principles and sought to enrich himself as quickly as possible. He was both fascinated and intimidated by her, and his plan was to amass enough money and then escape her sphere of influence for good. However, following the murders of Colonel Ignathof and his heir, Captain Peter Baranoff, the tide turned for the Trio Infernale. For, to his misfortune, Julie’s accomplice Vlassovsky came under the scrutiny of Colonel Danevitch during a dubious conversation following Captain Baranoff’s death. Danevitch now did everything in his power to put an end to the murderous reign of Julie and her two accomplices in St Petersburg. Danevitch engaged in a dangerous game of cat and mouse with Julie and her accomplices. He pretended to be wealthy in order to lure Julie in. As Julie assumed that Danevitch was a filthy rich gentleman, she asked him for financial support; and, seemingly yielding to her pleas, Danevitch drew up a document which was supposedly to transfer certain estates in Poland to her upon his death. Of course, these estates did not exist. Subsequently, Julie began slowly poisoning Danevitsch with small doses of black hellebore, which she slipped into his tea. Danevitsch did not, however, drink the tea, but pretended to Julie that he was feeling increasingly unwell. Julie’s diabolical cunning was evident in her every move. She avoided being seen in public with him and did not allow any of her visitors to see him either. As a result, it would not have become common knowledge that she was seeing him. When his illness worsened as a result of repeated doses, she had him taken to a hotel. She knew full well that, as in the case of Colonel Ignatof, he would be reluctant to let it become known that he was having an intimate relationship with her. This time, however, Julie was beaten at her own game, as Danevtisch was merely feigning illness and had the tea she had served him analysed. It turned out that it had been poisoned. The evidence against Julie was overwhelming. Julie was arrested along with her accomplices. When she realised she would be sentenced to death for her two murders and the attempted murder of Danevitsch, she resolved to evade justice by poisoning herself with prussic acid in her cell. The acid was passed to her by a guard who had been bribed by one of her friends. However, this cost him his freedom, as he was banished to Northern Siberia for the rest of his life. Her loyal companion, Roko, died shortly afterwards of typhus, which he had contracted in prison. Yet he had remained steadfastly silent right to the end. He revealed nothing about Julie’s criminal activities. Vlassovsky, on the other hand, was deported to Northern Siberia along with the traitorous guard. He, however, soon died as a result of the harsh conditions and the bitter Arctic cold. The exact number of Madame Julie’s victims was never determined. There was no doubt, however, that there were many. Her downfall brought great relief to St Petersburg and Moscow, where she had poisoned so many men out of greed.
