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Tales of the twisted
podcast
Elisabeth Fritzl: The Girl in the Basement
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Welcome to Tales of the Twisted.
True stories of the strange, weird, bizarre, and shocking.
This is the true story of the girl in the basement.
August 28th, 1984 — 18-year-old Elizabeth Fritzl went missing.
The day started off pretty ordinary. Elizabeth’s father was working in his basement and asked his daughter an innocent request: could she help him hoist a door into its frame?
Elizabeth climbed down the stairs into the basement and helped her dad with this simple request. Once the door was hung, she turned to leave — and at that moment, a piece of cloth soaked in chloroform was held over her mouth and nose.
Everything went dark.
Little did Elizabeth or Josef’s wife know, but Josef had been planning what was effectively a dungeon for years, receiving official permission to construct his cellar complex as far back as the late 1970s.
It wasn’t difficult to get officials to approve underground constructions — it was the height of the Cold War, and this was Lower Austria, a country bordering the Soviet Union. Nuclear bunkers were seen as normal. The local council even gave him a grant toward construction costs.
At first, Josef placed cuffs on Elizabeth’s arms and chained them behind her back to a metal post behind the bed. She could only move about one foot to either side.
Elizabeth’s mother, Rosemary, filed a missing persons report, frantic. For weeks there was no word — until a letter arrived claiming Elizabeth had run away. Josef told police she had joined a religious cult. In reality, Elizabeth was less than twenty feet beneath their feet.
To the family, Josef’s daily trips to the basement were nothing unusual. He “drew machine plans” and sometimes stayed overnight. But for Elizabeth, it was hell.
Josef visited at least three times a week to assault her. It’s estimated he assaulted her more than 3,000 times.
Two years into captivity, Elizabeth became pregnant but miscarried at ten weeks. Two years later, she became pregnant again and delivered a daughter, Kirsten, alone with only a pregnancy book Josef grudgingly provided.
Two years later came a son, Stefan. The children grew up in the cellar, taught by Elizabeth, surviving on limited weekly rations Josef provided.
In 1992, Elizabeth gave birth to another daughter, Lisa. Josef decided the cellar was too small and placed Lisa in a cardboard box outside the home, forcing Elizabeth to write a note saying she could no longer care for her. Josef and Rosemary “adopted” the baby without question.
Shockingly, social services never investigated. More infants — Monica in 1994 and Alexander in 1997 — also appeared on the Fritzl doorstep and were accepted as abandoned children.
In total, Elizabeth was impregnated eight times. One miscarriage, one infant who died shortly after birth, and six surviving children.
Josef likely planned to keep her captive forever.
But in 2008, everything changed.
Kirsten — now 19 — fell critically ill. Elizabeth begged Josef to take her to the hospital. He reluctantly agreed, claiming he had a note from Kirsten’s mother explaining her condition.
Police questioned the public for a week seeking the girl’s family — but no one came forward. Suspicion grew, and investigators reopened the disappearance of Elizabeth Fritzl.
They examined the letters Elizabeth supposedly sent and noticed inconsistencies. Within days, Josef cracked — and released Elizabeth and the remaining children from the cellar after 24 years.
Elizabeth immediately went to the hospital. Staff alerted police. After making officers promise she’d never face her father again, she revealed everything: the basement prison, the assaults, the children, the 24-year nightmare.
Josef Fritzl was arrested that same night.
The children from the cellar emerged pale, stooped, unable to tolerate sunlight or fresh air. Rosemary fled the home, claiming she knew nothing, a claim Josef supported.
Today, Elizabeth and her children live in a protected community known only as “Village X,” under constant surveillance, with total privacy. No interviews are allowed. The only publicly available photo of Elizabeth is from when she was 16.
Life has been difficult. The “upstairs children” struggled with guilt; the “downstairs children” struggled to adapt. Over time, the fractured siblings slowly bonded.
Josef pleaded guilty to rape, incest, false imprisonment, and manslaughter by negligence. He is serving a life sentence at age 89.
Rosemary now lives alone in a small town, selling crafts to survive, her relationship with Elizabeth slowly healing. She is allowed visits with the grandchildren she unknowingly raised as her own.
And that is the story of the girl from the basement.
Thank you for listening to Tales of the Twisted — stories of the strange, weird, bizarre, and shocking. Hit follow for more.
True stories of the strange, weird, bizarre, and shocking.
This is the true story of the girl in the basement.
August 28th, 1984 — 18-year-old Elizabeth Fritzl went missing.
The day started off pretty ordinary. Elizabeth’s father was working in his basement and asked his daughter an innocent request: could she help him hoist a door into its frame?
Elizabeth climbed down the stairs into the basement and helped her dad with this simple request. Once the door was hung, she turned to leave — and at that moment, a piece of cloth soaked in chloroform was held over her mouth and nose.
Everything went dark.
Little did Elizabeth or Josef’s wife know, but Josef had been planning what was effectively a dungeon for years, receiving official permission to construct his cellar complex as far back as the late 1970s.
It wasn’t difficult to get officials to approve underground constructions — it was the height of the Cold War, and this was Lower Austria, a country bordering the Soviet Union. Nuclear bunkers were seen as normal. The local council even gave him a grant toward construction costs.
At first, Josef placed cuffs on Elizabeth’s arms and chained them behind her back to a metal post behind the bed. She could only move about one foot to either side.
Elizabeth’s mother, Rosemary, filed a missing persons report, frantic. For weeks there was no word — until a letter arrived claiming Elizabeth had run away. Josef told police she had joined a religious cult. In reality, Elizabeth was less than twenty feet beneath their feet.
To the family, Josef’s daily trips to the basement were nothing unusual. He “drew machine plans” and sometimes stayed overnight. But for Elizabeth, it was hell.
Josef visited at least three times a week to assault her. It’s estimated he assaulted her more than 3,000 times.
Two years into captivity, Elizabeth became pregnant but miscarried at ten weeks. Two years later, she became pregnant again and delivered a daughter, Kirsten, alone with only a pregnancy book Josef grudgingly provided.
Two years later came a son, Stefan. The children grew up in the cellar, taught by Elizabeth, surviving on limited weekly rations Josef provided.
In 1992, Elizabeth gave birth to another daughter, Lisa. Josef decided the cellar was too small and placed Lisa in a cardboard box outside the home, forcing Elizabeth to write a note saying she could no longer care for her. Josef and Rosemary “adopted” the baby without question.
Shockingly, social services never investigated. More infants — Monica in 1994 and Alexander in 1997 — also appeared on the Fritzl doorstep and were accepted as abandoned children.
In total, Elizabeth was impregnated eight times. One miscarriage, one infant who died shortly after birth, and six surviving children.
Josef likely planned to keep her captive forever.
But in 2008, everything changed.
Kirsten — now 19 — fell critically ill. Elizabeth begged Josef to take her to the hospital. He reluctantly agreed, claiming he had a note from Kirsten’s mother explaining her condition.
Police questioned the public for a week seeking the girl’s family — but no one came forward. Suspicion grew, and investigators reopened the disappearance of Elizabeth Fritzl.
They examined the letters Elizabeth supposedly sent and noticed inconsistencies. Within days, Josef cracked — and released Elizabeth and the remaining children from the cellar after 24 years.
Elizabeth immediately went to the hospital. Staff alerted police. After making officers promise she’d never face her father again, she revealed everything: the basement prison, the assaults, the children, the 24-year nightmare.
Josef Fritzl was arrested that same night.
The children from the cellar emerged pale, stooped, unable to tolerate sunlight or fresh air. Rosemary fled the home, claiming she knew nothing, a claim Josef supported.
Today, Elizabeth and her children live in a protected community known only as “Village X,” under constant surveillance, with total privacy. No interviews are allowed. The only publicly available photo of Elizabeth is from when she was 16.
Life has been difficult. The “upstairs children” struggled with guilt; the “downstairs children” struggled to adapt. Over time, the fractured siblings slowly bonded.
Josef pleaded guilty to rape, incest, false imprisonment, and manslaughter by negligence. He is serving a life sentence at age 89.
Rosemary now lives alone in a small town, selling crafts to survive, her relationship with Elizabeth slowly healing. She is allowed visits with the grandchildren she unknowingly raised as her own.
And that is the story of the girl from the basement.
Thank you for listening to Tales of the Twisted — stories of the strange, weird, bizarre, and shocking. Hit follow for more.
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