Dariusz Paweł Kotwica (born 1986), known as the Euro Ripper, is an itinerant Polish criminal and

serial killer A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A * * * * with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...

, responsible for at least three murders of pensioners in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. Described as the "first European serial killer" who travelled using

open border An open border is a border that enables free movement of people (and often of goods) between jurisdictions with no restrictions on movement and is lacking substantive border control. A border may be an open border due to intentional legislation ...

s, he is thought to be responsible for additional murders in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. The mentally-ill Kotwica is currently in a treatment centre in

Göllersdorf Göllersdorf is a town in the district of Hollabrunn (district), Hollabrunn in Lower Austria, Austria. Peter Schidlof (1922–1987), the Austrian-British violist and co-founder of the Amadeus Quartet, was born in Göllersdorf. Geography Göllers ...

Biography

Early life

Kotwica grew up in Metalchem, a housing estate on the outskirts of Opole. Although described as an average, normal guy, he was known around the area for always wearing a tracksuit when walking around the blocks. Dariusz was raised solely by his mother and never met his father. Despite his failing grades in school and

truancy Truancy is any intentional, unjustified, unauthorised, or illegal absence from compulsory education. It is a deliberate absence by a student's own free will (though sometimes adults or parents will allow and/or ignore it) and usually does not refe ...

, Kotwica was considered very intelligent, and was notably interested in

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical co ...

. Sometime around 2005, he left his native Poland and began travelling around Europe, first settling to live in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

for several years.

Crimes

Prior to his murders, Kotwica seriously injured an unknown person in the Netherlands in 2011, attempted to murder a shopkeeper in

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the ...

in 2012 after failing to shoplift, and robbed a grocery in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in January 2015. In April 2015, he mercilessly stabbed 79-year-old Swedish pensioner Bo Georg Ehrlander to death. Ehrlander was later found where he was murdered, lying on the kitchen floor of his Saltholmen home. His car keys were also found to be missing. On the 21st of May, Kotwica broke into the home of 75-year-old local politician Gerhard Hintermeier and his 74-year-old wife, Erna. Both were brutally battered and stabbed, with Kotwica raping Erna before killing her. He then proceeded to write the phrase "

Tantum ergo "Tantum ergo" is the incipit of the last two verses of Pange lingua, a Medieval Latin hymn generally attributed to St Thomas Aquinas c. 1264, but based by Aquinas upon various earlier fragments. The "Genitori genitoque" and "Procedenti ab utroque" ...

" on her body with brown paint.

Capture, trial and sentence

Kotwica was by now internationally wanted. He was arrested on June 8 at a railway station in

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...

, after being caught on surveillance cameras using the dead couple's ATM card. He was quickly extradited back to Austria, where he soon confessed to committing the double murder. He also admitted having killed Ehrlander, whose car keys were found in his possession. When questioned on his motive, Kotwica confessed that he felt "joy" when torturing his innocent and randomly-selected victims. Dariusz Kotwica was soon sent to court, where he claimed that his "inner voices" were telling him to kill. Psychiatrists thoroughly examined him, concluding that he has had

paranoid schizophrenia Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically Auditory hallucination#Schizophrenia, hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. ...

for at least 10 years. Kotwica was found guilty and convicted of murdering the Hintermeiers and Ehrlander, but as a result of his mental illness, was transferred to a treatment centre in

, where he is currently housed.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kotwica, Dariusz 1986 births Living people People convicted of murder by Austria People convicted of murder by Sweden People from Opole People with schizophrenia Polish expatriates in England Polish people imprisoned abroad Polish rapists Polish serial killers

Biography

Early life

Crimes

Capture, trial and sentence

See also

References