Frau Duplaca, Serial Child-Killer – Poland, 1901

FULL TEXT: The papers in Krakow report from Przemysl about a married couple, who have come on the track of many years of angel-making. A certain Jacek Duplaca, with his illegitimate wife, had long practiced the education of foreign children for a fee, and it happened repeatedly that the children entrusted to them died after a few months. The neighborhood knew that the children were being maltreated; but as there was no evidence, the couple continued to pursue his trade until a few weeks before Duplaca took in the son of a service nurse. One often heard the miserable screaming child, who looked increasingly poor and physically faded away under the eyes of the people. In the presence of the couple nobody ventured to enter his apartment. When Duplaca went with the woman into the city, they sent for the police, who opened the apartment and found the boy with his hands bound and with a gag in his mouth, with many traces of maltreatment and open wounds all over his body. It was difficult to bring the unconscious child back to life and transport him to the hospital. Jacek Duplaca, however, got wind of the incident. Before returning home, both he and his wife fled. They are still being looking for, in vain.

["Galician Angelmaking." Bukovinaer Rundschau (Chernivtsi, Ukraine), July 30. 1901. p. 3]

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Przemyśl is a city in south-eastern Poland with 66,756 inhabitants, as of June 2009. In 1999, it became part of the Subcarpathian Voivodeship; it was previously the capital of Przemyśl Voivodeship. Przemyśl owes its long and rich history to the advantages of its geographic location.

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FULL TEXT: Die Blätter in Krakau berichten aus Przemysl von einem Ehepaar, dem man auf die Spur langjähriger Engelmacherei gekommen ist. Ein gewisser Jacek Duplaca mit seiner illegitimen Frau betrieb schon lange gewerbsmäßig die Erziehung fremder Kinder gegen Entgelt, und es geschah wiederholt, daß die ihnen anvertrauten Kinder nach einigen Monaten starben. Die Nachbarschaft wußte, daß die Kinder mißhandelt wurden; da man aber keine Beweise hatte trieb das Paar sein Gewerbe weiter, bis vor einigen Wochen Duplaca den Sohneiner Dienstniagd zur Pflege übernahm. Man hörte oft das jämmerliche Geschreides Kindes, das immer schlechter aussah und unter den Augen der Leute körperlich dahinschwand. In Anwesenheit des Paar es wagte aber Niemand dessen Wohnung zu betreten. Als nun Duplaca mit der Frau in die Stadt ging, schickte man nach der Polizei, welche die Wohnung öffnete und den Knaben mit gefesselten Händen und mit einem Knebel im Munde, mit vielen Spuren von Mißhandlungen und offenen Wunden am ganzen Körper fand. Man konnte das ohnmächtige Kind nur mit Mühe zum Leben erwecken und ins Spital transportiren. Duplaca erhielt jedoch vor dem Vorfalle Wind. Ehe er heimkehrte, und suchte mit seiner Frau das Weite. Man sucht bis jetzt vergeblich seine Spur.

[“Galizische Engekmacherei “ Bukowinaer Rundschau (Czernowitz, Ukraine), 30. Juli. 1901. p. 3]

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For more cases of “Baby Farmers,” professional child care providers who murdered children see The Forgotten Serial Killers.

 

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