Vienna is a beautiful city full of music, dancing, art and culture, especially if you are lucky enough to be born into a rich family. Hilda Pomeroy longed to be a part of that social scene; but she did not have the right pedigree. She was beautiful; all the boys loved her but she wanted more than just a boy.
Karl was a handsome young man, she’d known him since her school days; she had always liked Karl. They dated for a time but Karl could not provide for Hilda what she truly wanted, money and social standing. She grew tired of the dives and garish café’s Karl took her to. She cringed when he brought her to dingy movie theaters or smoky, trashy bars. She longed for the red carpet of the opera houses and the fine wine enjoyed at extravagant restaurants.
Hilda decided to find a way to better her situation; she began hanging around the café across from the Vienna State Opera House. Every Saturday night she put on her best outfit and headed to the café. Soon she found herself chatting with a very rich man; he was older than she was by a few decades but that did not bother her.
She began dividing her time between Karl and Mr. Reiner, her wealthy new suitor. Karl had no idea she was stepping out on him until he dropped by her place unannounced and watched her leave with Mr. Reiner. He stayed outside her house and waited for her to return, he wanted answers.
Late that night Hilda showed up with Mr. Reiner, he kissed her hand and made a date to take her to Reinschloss on Saturday. Karl held his temper and waited until the old man was out of sight then he confronted his cheating beloved. “What is wrong with you Hilda, he is old enough to be your grandfather!” He grabbed her arm and spun her around so he could see the look of surprise on her face.
Hilda threw a fit when he put his hands on her, “don’t you touch me you beast, let go of my arm before I scratch your eyes out!” She yanked her arm free and slapped him in the face. “You have no right sneaking around spying on me; you don’t even have enough money to buy me a ring made of tin!”
Karl was shocked; he stood staring into her cold angry eyes and took a step back as she pointed her finger in his face. “Look Karl, you don’t have the money to satisfy a girl like me. I need more than a handsome guy and a few kisses; it’s over between us.” She turned and went into the house; leaving him standing on the sidewalk dazed and hurt.
Saturday night, after spending the evening with Mr. Reiner at the Reinschloss Hilda received the surprise of her life. Mr. Reiner proposed; he could not get down on one knee but the ring he put on her finger made up for his lack of decorum; a five-carat diamond solitaire set in platinum. Hilda cried tears of joy, her dreams had come true, and she was going to be rich.
She planned her wedding without thought to money; her dress was a testament to her newfound wealth. Rumors circulated among Reiner’s friends that Hilda was only interested in the money so she did her best to appear extra loving and sweet. The rumor mill churned on and eventually petered out. Her pretended devotion to Mr. Reiner and his adoration for her silenced the critics.
Hilda and Mr. Reiner married on May 14, 1929. The wedding was an elaborate affair; Vienna society showed up in their best and everyone fell in love with beautiful Hilda Reiner. The reception featured the best musicians and carefully prepared gourmet food. Hilda was in heaven as she watched the guests pile in with expensive gifts. The new Mr. and Mrs. Reiner even made front-page news; the wedding became the gala event of the year.
Hilda settled into married life and learned to manipulate her husband quickly. Her smooth words and loving attention melted his heart and he caved in to her every demand. She buried herself in luxury; extravagant dinner parties, servants who catered to her every whim and clothing that was fit for royalty. She flitted from party to party, from opera house to decadent masquerade ball, her fantasy was now reality; but in her heart, she longed for her lost love Karl.
Karl longed for Hilda too; he continued to try to contact her. He sent letters but they went unanswered. He still loved her; he believed she would eventually come back to him. He haunted the old movie theater where they spent many Saturday nights together. Then one evening as he scanned the crowded lobby he spotted her. She smiled at him then slipped out of the side exit and into the alleyway.
Karl’s heart leapt in his chest as he tried to keep his composure. He exited the theatre through the front door. She stood waiting for him in the dimly lit alleyway; her heart began to race as he stepped from the light of the street and into the shadows. She ran into his waiting arms, he held her close as she stammered declarations of love and cried like a child.
“You are right Karl, I don’t love him, and I have always loved you.” She looked into his eyes, and then she pulled away from his embrace. “I don’t know what to do…I cannot be happy without you, but I am a married woman now.” Tears streamed down her cheeks and she wiped at them with the sleeve of her coat.
Karl reached out and took her hand, “It will be alright Hilda, we can be together if you divorce him.” He felt the muscles in her hand tighten as he spoke. “What’s the matter; you said you don’t love him.” She turned her back on him and his heart was on the verge of breaking once again.
She stopped crying and slowly turned to meet his gaze, “Karl it is not as easy as that, I cannot just walk away from all of that money and into a world of poverty. I think I might go insane if I cannot find a way to have both…I want you and the money.” Her tears began to flow again and her lip quivered…she hesitated then whispered, “you need to get rid of him Karl; get rid of him so I can be with you and we can live together in this new life I have made.”
The request hit him like a lightning bolt, he was stunned; he was not a killer but her sad beautiful face brought him to a dreadful place. “If I did this for us Hilda the law would take me away from you, our love would be suspect, everyone knows how much I love you.”
She stood quiet for a long moment; the tears dried on her cheeks leaving streaks in her expensive makeup. “If you cannot be strong, I will be strong for both of us. I will take care of this situation myself. Stay away until I contact you, no letters, no chance meetings and no more whining; when I think it is safe I will find you.” Karl nodded then leaned in to kiss her, she put up her hand, “no, you have to wait until I am a widow.” She left him standing in the alley, alone but full of expectation and hope.
Two weeks after meeting with Karl, Hilda went to the pharmacy to purchase rat poison. When the pharmacist returned with the poison, he announced that she would have to sign a logbook. The book kept a record of everyone who purchased rat poison; just in case the police needed a lead. “I just need to kill some rats, now I feel like a common criminal.” Hilda protested as she signed the book, Maria Eckert.
The request to sign for the rat poison made Hilda anxious so she waited a month before slipping it into her husband’s coffee. His age and frail body did not take long to succumb to the poison. Three nights after the first dose he died; the coroner never suspected foul play, the man was over seventy years old. Hilda put on a brief but dramatic show of mourning for several weeks; then she waited four months before making plans to contact her beloved.
Karl and Hilda celebrated their long awaited reunion with a succession of extravagant parties. Polite Vienna society accepted Karl; no one questioned Hilda’s desire to marry again, she was too young to remain a widow. The couple spent money like water; they had the best of everything and the bills to prove it.
Hilda married Karl and the two shared the wealth Mr. Reiner left behind. She showed no signs of regret; they lived in the house where she murdered Reiner. Eventually they spent every dime the old man left her and without the excessive amounts of cash, she became despondent and angry.
Looking for a way to replenish her funds she took out a large insurance policy on her husband. Then she and Karl sat down for a talk, “Karl, we cannot continue to live like this, something has to change. I went to see our insurance agent today and purchased a disability plan for you. If you lose your leg, we will get $400,000.00 dollars!”
Karl was shocked and terrified at the idea, he did not want to give up this lavish lifestyle but losing one of his legs seemed extreme. Hilda explained that insurance companies only pay out large sums if the injury ends in a crippling disability. She explained that he would not be in any pain; she would knock him out with ether before doing the deed. After days of badgering, Karl agreed to the heinous act.
The couple rented a cabin for the weekend so they could do what needed to be done without fear of being found out. The two of them went out behind the cabin and Hilda handed Karl a handkerchief dipped in ether. Karl held the handkerchief up to his nose and mouth and took a long breath; he began to feel dizzy but before he hit the ground, he mumbled, “don’t do this Hilda, I don’t want to lose my leg, I changed my…” his voice trailed off as he passed out.
She raised the axe over her head and brought it down on Karl’s leg, just above his left knee. Then she quickly tied off the stump with a tourniquet to stem the bleeding and called an ambulance. When the ambulance arrived, she pretended to be distraught, crying and shouting that Karl had hurt himself chopping wood.
No one at the hospital questioned the accident; but the insurance company decided they wanted tests done to confirm it was an accident. Hilda quickly found an orderly who was willing to get rid of the leg for a price. She and Karl left the hospital believing they were in the clear.
The couple waited but the check never came, however, a letter from an insurance investigator did arrive. Mr. Rankert from the insurance company had gotten a confession from the hospital orderly and the company would not pay out without going to court. The insurance company was claiming fraud, Hilda and Karl would have to go to court, and if proven guilty they would go to jail.
Mr. Rankert made his living uncovering insurance fraud and he was convinced the couple was guilty. He had the confession from the orderly but Hilda claimed she was being harassed. She said the insurance did not want to pay out such a large sum. Mr. Rankert did his best in court to prove their guilt but the judge was not impressed. The case was not clear-cut; it was difficult to believe someone would cut off his or her own leg for money. The insurance company was forced to cut a deal; $50,000.00 for the accident.
The couple settled for the $50,000.00, it was better than nothing. They went right back to hosting expensive parties and making extravagant purchases, but Karl was having a hard time adjusting to life without his leg. His disability made it hard to keep up with Hilda and she would not slow down for him. The couple began fighting, terrible fights; the fights began to take a toll on Hilda’s good time and she was not about to let Karl’s disability end her party early.
Hilda fell out of love with Karl; she did not want to take care of a cripple for the rest of her life. She made plans to fix her problem and began sprinkling rat poison on Karl’s food. He became extremely ill, doctors could not find the cause of his sickness; no one suspected his poison. Slowly, day by day, his health deteriorated until he passed away in his sleep. Hilda put on a fabulous show, crying and mourning the loss of her dear, beloved, husband.
The money from the insurance company did not last much longer than poor Karl did and soon Hilda was almost broke. Bill collectors threatened to take her to court and she frantically searched for a new victim. She remembered a rich old aunt, her grandmothers younger sister, she visited the old woman and soon she moved in to care for her.
The old woman was grateful to have someone there to help her, she was frail and her sight was failing. Hilda doted on her aunt, anything the old woman wanted Hilda supplied. She cooked and cleaned for her and spent time playing cards and chatting over tea. She made the old woman happy and her aunt decided to make her heir to her estate. The poor old lady had no idea that her signature on the will sealed her fate.
Three days after Hilda was made heir to the estate the old woman became gravely ill. She took to her bed and Hilda brought her tea; tea laced with poison. Two doses of rat poison was all it took to stop her heart; she slipped into unconsciousness and never woke up. Hilda provided a fine funeral for her dearly departed aunt; she mourned the old woman’s passing with sobs and lamentations. Then, as soon as the body was in the ground, she began redecorating the old lady’s home.
Hilda felt safe from detection; she believed no one suspected her of murdering those closest to her. She carried on her daily routine and extravagant lifestyle without skipping a beat. She thought she was beyond the reach of the law but she was wrong; someone was watching.
Rankert knew she had cut off the leg of her husband and decided she was a threat to others. He followed her in his spare time, watching her every move and when the old woman died, he began questioning the pharmacist from the local pharmacy; he was convinced that poison was the only way to kill without detection. The pharmacist remembered a beautiful blonde buying rat poison but the name in the book was wrong.
He knew she was a vicious, ruthless individual capable of murder but he needed something solid to give to the police. He had her handwriting compared to the signature of Maria Eckert and it came back a match. With the report in hand, he went to the police and the judge ordered an exhumation of the old woman’s remains.
An autopsy was performed on the body and rat poison was identified as the cause of death. When the results came back positive, the bodies of Karl and Mr. Reiner were also subjected to autopsies and both proved rat poison as the culprit. Hilda’s days of living the highlife were at an end.
A speedy trial followed with the inevitable guilty verdict and death sentence. Hilda spent her final days in a small cell, waiting for execution. She begged and pleaded for her life but the order was final and in March 1938 she became the first woman to be beheaded in Austria for more than 100 years.
Austria’s most cold blooded murderess had been brought to justice.