The Horrific Serial Killer Who Was Innocent? | The Controversial Case of The Zagłębie Vampire

What this episode is about

The Zagłębie Vampire, a notorious Polish serial killer named G slab Marchwiki, terrorized the Dom Brava Basin and Upper Silesia from 1964 to 1970, targeting women in a series of brutal murders that instilled fear in the community. Despite his horrific reputation, an analysis of Marchwiki's troubled upbringing, dysfunctional family, and personal struggles raises questions about his true culpability and the circumstances surrounding his actions.

Key takeaways

• In a chilling twist, the Zaglebia Vampire thrived on the very fear he created—crime flourished in shadows.
• Despite relentless investigations, the vampire's reign lasted six years, revealing police inability to adapt to a new kind of predator.
• A particularly eerie aspect? The killer's fascination with death, noted in his diaries, bordered on poetic horror.
• The vampire's notoriety turned local women into prisoners of fear, sparking an unusual alliance between fear and community solidarity.
• Even after a million-zwadi bounty, the vampire's identity remained an enigma, highlighting how fear can obscure clarity.

Who speaks in this episode?

• G. Slaw Marchwiki (Host) · 2 min speaking
• Grashina Star Jack (Guest) · 2 min speaking

What is discussed, and when

1. 0:00 – 5:00: Zaglebia, Silesia, Don Brava Gornita, Anna MyCheck
2. 5:00 – 10:00: Zaglebia, Katavissa, Silesia, Piota Olshova
3. 10:00 – 15:00: Zaglebia, Silesia, Henrik Marchwiki, Katavissa
4. 15:00 – 20:00: Grashina Star Jack, Zaglebia, Henrik Marchwiki, Jan Marchwiki

Notable quotes from "The Horrific Serial Killer Who Was Innocent? | The Controversial Case of The Zagłębie Vampire"

• From 1964 a series of atrocious murders took place on the territories of Dom Brava Basin and upper Silesia Poland there was only one thing in common with all the people who were attacked and killed brutally.

  about Silesia · at 0:01

• Very early and he was not a good student because he preferred to pick up girls instead of studying there were some records of him working as a minor in the zawadsky mine in Don…

  about Don Brava Gornita · at 2:02

• On November 7 1964 an emergency occurred in the capital of Silesia administrative area the city of catavism the body of 15 year old Anna MyCheck was found in the city according…

  about Katavissa · at 3:07

• Katavissa established a group called zaglevia to catch a serial killer later the group's name was changed to Anna after March Wiki's first victim Captain yaje grubar took…

  about Anna MyCheck · at 8:08

• Chance the vampire's last murder was the killing of Yad Vega kochenka on March 4th 1970. at that time a man named piota olshova was accused of the murder and confessed to…

  about Piota Olshova · at 9:30

• Abused her and her children and was also a troublemaker later Maria stated that she was the one who started the quarrels and beat her husband he was Jan March Wiki who took…

  about Maria Marchwicka · at 13:58

• Shouted he was innocent the g-slab March Wiki and his murders were widely discussed in the media a true identity of the vampire became a matter of debate after a local TV program called paragraph 148 Kara.

  about Zajislav Marchwiki · at 15:26

• Fairness of the trial in the 1990s a krakov journalist grashina star Jack decided to contact people involved in the March Wiki Brothers case militiamen prosecutors judges.

  about Grashina Star Jack · at 17:19

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

• Zajislav Marchwiki — Person · Primary subject (accused serial killer) · 5 mentions
  Central figure of the episode: presented as the alleged 'Zagłębie Vampire', tried and executed, with later debate about possible innocence.
• Anna MyCheck — Person · Victim (first described murder victim) · 1 mention · first at 3:14
  Her 1964 murder is described in detail and is framed as an early/first victim; the task force name was later changed to 'Anna' after her.
• Maria Marchwicka — Person · Key witness / spouse of accused · 2 mentions · first at 2:22
  Named as Marchwiki’s wife; her abuse report contributed to his arrest and her testimony was used to portray him as violent/sadistic, later partially recanted.
• Grashina Star Jack — Person · Investigative journalist / later commentator · 2 mentions · first at 17:30
  In the 1990s, she investigated the case by interviewing participants and reviewing interrogation records, highlighting doubts about the confession and evidence.
• Henrik Marchwiki — Person · Co-defendant / brother of accused · 3 mentions · first at 11:57
  Identified as one of Marchwiki’s brothers detained and later sentenced (25 years) for assisting in a murder; died in prison under unclear circumstances.
  Brother Jan received the same sentence for instigating the murder of Yad Vega kachenka Henrik marchwecky was sentenced to 25 years in prison for assisting in the murder the…
• Piota Olshova — Person · Alternative suspect / false confessor (as presented) · 2 mentions · first at 9:37
  Accused of the last murder and confessed despite lack of evidence; later killed his family and himself; later debate suggests he may have been the real killer.
• Jan Marchwiki — Person · Co-defendant / brother of accused · 2 mentions · first at 14:55
  Presented as Marchwiki’s brother who allegedly instigated/commanded at least one murder; sentenced to death and executed alongside Zajislav.
  Prison on April 26 1977 zajislav March Wiki and his brother Jan marchwiki were executed in a police Garage in catavissa before his death shouted he was innocent the g-slab March Wiki and his murders.
• Yad Vega Kochenka — Person · Victim (last murder attributed in narrative) · 1 mention · first at 9:30
  Described as the last murder (March 4, 1970) and central to later accusations involving Piota Olshova and the sentencing of Jan and Henrik.
  The killings however as we already know the vampire from zaglebia acted by Chance the vampire's last murder was the killing of Yad Vega kochenka on March 4th 1970. at that time…
• Evat Packham — Person · Victim · 1 mention · first at 4:17
  Named as one of the women found dead during the 1965 sequence of attacks used to link crimes to the 'Zagłębie Vampire'.
  Irina shamiska was attacked but fortunately she survived the attack that's when the investigators suspected a connection between all of these crimes all of the victims of these…
• Lydia Novaska — Person · Victim · 1 mention · first at 4:25
  Named as another murder victim in the 1965 series; included in the pattern that led investigators to suspect a single perpetrator.
  Irina shamiska was attacked but fortunately she survived the attack that's when the investigators suspected a connection between all of these crimes all of the victims of these…
• Irina Shamiska — Person · Surviving victim / attempted-murder victim · 1 mention · first at 4:36
  Her survival is cited as part of the linked series of attacks; attempted murder supports the MO description (blow to back of head).
  Approximately two months later another woman named Lydia novaska was murdered in Beijing on May 14th a woman named Irina shamiska was attacked but fortunately she survived the…

Companies & orgs

• Polish United Workers Party — Company · Referenced organization · 1 mention · first at 9:06
  Political party mentioned in the context of one of the victims being related to its secretary.
  Yolented Europe it was found in the pochemsha river young girek was the niece of the secretary of the Polish United Workers Party almost 300 men were suspected including March Wiki when creating a profile of the murderer several.

Places & events

• Zaglebia — Place · Setting · 11 mentions · first at 0:21
  Region where the serial killer was active and where most of the murders took place.
  Shouted he was innocent the g-slab March Wiki and his murders were widely discussed in the media a true identity of the vampire became a matter of debate after a local TV program called paragraph 148 Kara.
• Katavissa — Place · Setting · 2 mentions · first at 8:08
  City where several murders occurred and where the trial of the serial killer took place.
• Silesia — Place · Setting · 6 mentions · first at 0:04
  Administrative area where the murders occurred, adding to the fear and uncertainty among the population.
• Don Brava Gornita — Place · Setting · 2 mentions · first at 1:20
  City where the serial killer was born and where some of the murders occurred.
• Zawadsky Mine — Place · Setting · 1 mention · first at 2:09
  Place where the serial killer worked, providing context to his early life.
  Very early and he was not a good student because he preferred to pick up girls instead of studying there were some records of him working as a minor in the zawadsky mine in Don…

Full transcript with timestamps

0:01 from 1964 a series of atrocious murders took place on the territories of Dom Brava Basin and upper Silesia Poland there was only one thing in common with all the people who were attacked and killed brutally they were all women the unknown murderer was notoriously known as the zaglebia vampire and as long as the murderer was on the loose the streets of all the nearby areas were engulfed in fear the murderer we are going to talk about is the G slab marchwiki a Polish serial killer this is the story of his heinous Reign from 1964 to 1970. welcome to another episode of Twisted Minds we'll Deep dive into the circumstances involved in the real life hunt for the notorious polish serial killer known as the zaglebia vampire foreign marchwiki and many people remember that he was a cruel killer however only a few of them know the past of the zaglebia vampire marchwiki was born to a low-class family on October 8

1:20 1927. they lived in Don Brava gornita a city in southern Poland his father had married five times so he belonged to a dysfunctional family being an alcoholic his father never supported his family his mother although unemployed had to take care of the children he had three brothers and a sister all of his siblings were later found to be involved in what he did he didn't complete his studies because of his average intelligence and his lack of interest in studying while not much information is available regarding his early life some tidbits were found in his prison diary in which he wrote that his mother died very early and he was not a good student because he preferred to pick up girls instead of studying there were some records of him working as a minor in the zawadsky mine in Don Bravo gornita following his Father's Footsteps zajislav also became an alcoholic his diary also mentioned a woman named Maria

2:25 marchwicka she was apparently as white the G slab wrote that his marriage to Maria was not going well he drank heavily and preferred being with his friends instead of spending time with his wife at home his wife in turn complained that zaji slav was mistreating her in his writings early descents to Darkness would be revealed he described that he was fascinated by the sight of dead women when they were defenseless and in disarray he wrote how much the smell of blood made him shiver he scrapped himself to the point of blood just to feel it thank you on November 7 1964 an emergency occurred in the capital of Silesia administrative area the city of catavism the body of 15 year old Anna MyCheck was found in the city according to experts an unknown Predator first hit the woman on the head with something heavy which caused instant death but the killer inflicted more strong blows to the body of the already dead

3:36 woman the corpse was found about 10 meters from the place of the murder this was indicated by traces of dragging the autopsy established that she was hit on the head by at every object several times after that her body was dragged about 10 meters away although there were no signs of rape her coat was unbuttoned her skirt was lifted and her genitals were exposed the murderer was never arrested even after the ministry of Defense investigated many attacks on women were recorded in the following months on January 20th 1965 a woman named evat Packham was found dead in Gillette then approximately two months later another woman named Lydia novaska was murdered in Beijing on May 14th a woman named Irina shamiska was attacked but fortunately she survived the attack that's when the investigators suspected a connection between all of these crimes all of the victims of these attacks were women all of the victims of the attacks

4:50 were hit on the back of the head with a heavy object all of the victims were found near an area known as zaglebia Don brovsky it was assumed that the attacker was the same person and was named the zaglepia vampire the vampire was most active in 1965. then more and more women began to disappear and Silesia trembled with uncertainty some people said that the vampire from zaglebia was going to kill 1 000 women for the a thousandth anniversary of the Polish state women avoided going out after dark and when they had to they asked men to accompany them after a special Summit held by the ministry of Defense in the second half of July 1965 all of the previous cases were combined into one investigation the hunt for the zaglebjev vampire had begun the assaults mostly took place in an open area the killer followed the victim and then attacked by surprise he used to knock the victim unconscious by hitting

6:02 them on the head he then took the body to a more secluded Place most of the vampire victims were found in a position with their thighs open penetration of the genital area was found in isolated cases the vampire was never reported to have taken sexual advantage over a victim the perpetrators modus operandi also included searching women's handbags scattering their contents and stealing some items a dense communication Network and undoubtedly good knowledge of the area by the perpetrator meant that he could act with impunity for a long time arousing great anxiety and becoming feared by the inhabitants of ziglebia and upper cymesia he mostly attacked women based on four local towns during the first two years of activity the vampire committed as many as 14 crimes this included nine murders in five cases of attempted murder in the history of post-war Poland this case had no precedent after failing

7:11 to identify the murderer law enforcement turned to the general public for help an award of one million zwadis was set for anyone providing information that would lead to the arrest of the vampire different communication channels were set up for the public to provide information and absolute secrecy was guaranteed thousands of letters poured in every telephone or letter information was scrutinized meticulously the militia warned women against walking alone in secluded places husbands took their wives to and from work parents stopped letting their adult daughters out in the evening the Vampire made sure to kill random women and not leave any trails that may lead to him most of them however were young as they were more likely to walk alone at night in 1965 the provincial headquarters of the citizens militia in katavissa established a group called zaglevia to catch a serial killer later the group's name was changed to Anna

8:17 after March Wiki's first victim Captain yaje grubar took command of the entire operation the best militiamen from the operational and investigational services of the catavissa forces were involved in the case to speed up the case the most outstanding scientists specialists in the field of criminology Psychiatry psychology and sexology were consulted the militia used the latest equipment to detect the perpetrator despite all of these efforts there was still no breakthrough in the investigation probably the most breakthrough moment when the case began to unravel was finding the body of yolented Europe it was found in the pochemsha river young girek was the niece of the secretary of the Polish United Workers Party almost 300 men were suspected including March Wiki when creating a profile of the murderer several different mental and physical characteristics were considered attention was also paid to the political

9:22 motives that may have been involved in the killings however as we already know the vampire from zaglebia acted by Chance the vampire's last murder was the killing of Yad Vega kochenka on March 4th 1970. at that time a man named piota olshova was accused of the murder and confessed to committing the crime he was a mentally ill butcher from SAS noviets however there was no evidence pointing directly to him a few days later olshova killed his family set his house on fire and killed himself later the militia received an anonymous letter indicating that the murder was the last and they would never catch the killer it is still unknown who that letter came from in July 1970 the officers working on the Anna case determined 483 physical and mental characteristics that a wanted serial killer should have based on the analysis of the information collected in the investigation a group of over 267 suspects was gathered among

10:34 them Wiki he was arrested after his wife Maria filed a report of abuse of her and her children in 1972. March Wiki then 45 had previously been punished for insulting militiamen in the opinion issued by the municipal command of the mo in gelash it was stated that in his place of residence he was known as an alcoholic who was often detained and punished by the court three days after his arrest on January 9 1972 a huge photo of March Wiki appeared in all newspapers in zaglebia and Silesia with the information that an individual suspected of committing a series of monstrous crimes has been captured after two years of Investigation on September 18 1974 the trial of the vampire from zaglebia began due to the great interest in the case it was declared that the hearing would be held at the Silesia zinc Factory Club in katavissa an entrance to the hall which could accommodate up to 800 people was

11:54 ticketed a few months later the citizens militia detained two of March Wiki's Brothers Henrik and jam shortly afterward Joseph klimcheck complicit in the last crime was also detained the circumstantial evidence and the whole process began in the second half of 1974 and ended on July 28 1975. at that time the court in catavissa ruled that the G slav March Wiki would be sentenced to death for the murder of 14 women in the attempted murder of sixth the vampire from zaglebia trial was circumstantial from the beginning to the end it lacked strong evidence proving March Wiki's guilt at the beginning of the trial the accused recanted his earlier confession to the crime initially March Wiki himself denied responsibility the investigators observed odd behavior at the interrogations when asked to sign the confession he wrote at the bottom that this is all a lie at one point he took his confession and attempted to

13:02 swallow it in a trial of the vampire from zaglebia no direct evidence of the guilt of the man accused was present the investigation lasted over two years with the case File comprising 166 volumes ultimately the g-slab March Wiki the main defendant was charged with 14 murders in seven attempted murders the lawyers Justified their decision based on the history of March Wiki which included the history of beating of his family members disrespecting police officers and other offenses the court relied among others on the testimonies of the would-be victims of the vampire who identified March Wiki as the attacker in addition zazislav was incriminated by the testimony of his own white who presented him as a sadist who abused her and her children and was also a troublemaker later Maria stated that she was the one who started the quarrels and beat her husband he was Jan March Wiki who took command of the murder of

14:11 the women for which she was sentenced to death in 1977. he was a would-be priest Henrik marchwiki in turn was sentenced to 25 years in prison in 1998 he died under unexplained circumstances while serving his sentence in Jess shop he reportedly fell down the stairs and broke his back at the end of the trial March wikis seemed resigned in the last words of the accused when asked what the court was asking for he replied I would like to go where I need to go on July 28 1975 the Provincial Court in catavissa found the G slab March Wiki guilty of the alleged Acts and sentenced him to death his brother Jan received the same sentence for instigating the murder of Yad Vega kachenka Henrik marchwecky was sentenced to 25 years in prison for assisting in the murder the other defendants were sentenced to four to five years in prison on April 26 1977 zajislav March Wiki and his brother Jan marchwiki were executed in a police

15:22 Garage in catavissa before his death shouted he was innocent the g-slab March Wiki and his murders were widely discussed in the media a true identity of the vampire became a matter of debate after a local TV program called paragraph 148 Kara smirshi question zaglebia vampire's true identity to everyone's surprise the G slab March Wiki was presented as innocent the whole situation was presented as if the trial against the G slab was only applied for the media the Court's decision and the question of whether March Wiki's guilt was right to begin to be questioned by the general public another TV documentary called yesterday also considered March Wiki as innocent this raised mixed feelings and sparked numerous discussions was pointing to March Wiki just a prank was it all staged to make people feel safe in the state or maybe the real killer was pyoda old shova will probably never know one of the most highlighted

16:36 aspects was that the gist lab March Wiki never pleaded guilty this greatly undermined the fairness of the Court his family members claimed that March Wiki was a very simple man he was only able to finish the fourth grade of primary school due to his low intelligence he was easy to manipulate somehow he was made to admit to the crimes and when he tried to revoke it he was clearly asked to write what he had retracted this is how he eventually confessed a gam eventually he lost himself and gave an even higher number than the one in the indictment he was acquitted of one murder charge because it was not proven this worked as an argument for the fairness of the trial in the 1990s a krakov journalist grashina star Jack decided to contact people involved in the March Wiki Brothers case militiamen prosecutors judges lawyers and the rest of the convict families the accounts of these people shed new light

17:47 on the investigation and trial of the murder of the century after March Wiki was detained some of the officers involved in the Anna case doubted whether the suspect had actually committed the crimes attributed to the vampire as the investigation continued the circle of people deadly marked Wiki's guilt grew marchwiki pleaded not guilty to the charges against him for five months in detention according to grishina Star Jack a team of the best investigative officers in Poland were involved in interrogating the vampire militia men were placed with him in his cell whose task was to extract incriminating statements from him in the end March Wiki confessed to the crime but he could neither give the exact number of victims nor describe the details of the sub murders during the journalistic investigations grafsna star Jack looked at March Wiki's interrogation on May 10 1972 which is the first record of the vampire's

18:55 confession it includes such statements uttered by March Wiki Lieutenant help me what to say well how many of these homicides do I actually have apart from March Wiki's confession there was no strong evidence in the case proving his guilt The Specialist tests he was subject to gave negative results however as confirmed by some people closely associated with the Anna case the officers in charge of the investigation wanted to close the case as soon as possible the militia needed success it was said that the catavissa authorities at the time influenced the acceleration of the investigation when Mark Wiki was caught there was no question of looking for someone else said the prosecutor who is involved in the investigation for five years and later voluntarily resigned from the case 20 years after the trial he said Mark Wiki's execution was murder in the Majesty of the law so here it was the chilling story of a Polish serial killer

20:05 who ruthlessly murdered 14 women and injured many others the investigation lasted two years the case of March Wiki and his relatives consisted of 166 volumes zajislav's sister Helena Flack was accused of selling the belongings of the murdered women which her brother zaji slab gave to her for years he was the reason why women in southern Poland lived in constant fear of losing their lives at the hands of a monster but we are left with one question was the killer finally arrested thanks for tuning in to Twisted Minds that was the case of zaji slav marchwiki and why don't you go ahead and click on one of the two videos on your screen for another one of our videos

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "The Horrific Serial Killer Who Was Innocent? | The Controversial Case of The Zagłębie Vampire"?

G. Slaw Marchwiki (Host), Grashina Star Jack (Guest).

What is "The Horrific Serial Killer Who Was Innocent? | The Controversial Case of The Zagłębie Vampire" about?

The Zagłębie Vampire, a notorious Polish serial killer named G slab Marchwiki, terrorized the Dom Brava Basin and Upper Silesia from 1964 to 1970, targeting women in a series of brutal murders that instilled fear in the community. Despite his horrific reputation, an analysis of Marchwiki's troubled upbringing, dysfunctional family, and personal struggles raises questions about his true…

What is mentioned in this Twisted Minds episode?

17 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Zajislav Marchwiki, Zaglebia, Katavissa, Anna MyCheck, Silesia, Maria Marchwicka. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "The Horrific Serial Killer Who Was Innocent? | The Controversial Case of The Zagłębie Vampire"?

The episode runs 21 min; the transcript is about 2,859 words in 18 timestamped sections.

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