12-year-old niece. She had been kept by Pilčík in a hidden compartment of a pigsty, where she was belted to a structure that included a double-walled box for her head - to muffle the screaming. The girl was held there for most of the day and was regularly raped. Pilčík also forced her to write letters from "Bavaria". He then delivered the letters and demanded payment for this service in jewellery. Pilčík killed Emanuel in his sleep at "Lipovka", while the man waited to be smuggled to Bavaria. Balleyova, also planning to defect, was killed less than two weeks later, near Senec. Both victims were killed by baton blows to the head. In his confession, Pilčík stated that he had planned to kill Emanuel's niece, as well as another relative and his wife. However, by that time, he had been imprisoned, and committed suicide using two handkerchiefs. Given the amount of jewellery (the only "currency" of value to emigrants) found in his house, it was believed that Pilčík had killed more people trying to escape the Iron Curtain. In popular culture The story of Pilčík was used as a basis for one of the episodes of the TV series Thirty Cases of Major Zeman (30 případů majora Zemana), filmed in 1975. The episode inspired by Pilčík is called "The Beast" ("Bestie"). See also List of serial killers by country List of serial killers by number of victims Václav Mrázek References Sources J. Slušný, Černá kniha českých bestiálních vrahů - nejslavnější kriminální případy dvacátého století. Prague : XYZ, 2006. 204 pages. External links Picture of the hunter's lodge Lipovka after fire in 1951 1891 births 1951 suicides Czech serial killers Czechoslovak serial killers Male serial killers Prisoners who died in Czechoslovak detention Serial killers who committed suicide in prison custody Suicides by hanging in Czechoslovakia