Most of us know the story of Elisabeth Fritzl, it’s as sad as it is horrific. It’s been 15 years since Josef Fritzl was imprisoned for his monstrous crime yet the recounting of events and even recent dramatisations still send shivers down the spine. But what about the woman who experienced it? What is Elisabeth Fritzl doing now? And where is she?
Finding out exactly where she and her family are is next to impossible; and for good reason. Fritzl, who would now be 57 years old, and her six children were given new identities and moved into a brightly colored house located in a hamlet in the Austrian countryside to protect their identities.
Elisabeth Fritzl’s new life will likely remain a secret
There are very few details on Elisabeth, not even any up-to-date pictures. In fact, the Austrian government has introduced strict laws to prevent her and her family’s identity from ever being revealed. Even the name of the village where they live cannot be identified by the media with the location simply being referred to as ‘Village X.’
For their safety the two-storey house is also kept under constant surveillance with CCTV and security guards, presumably to protect the family from the unwanted attention of the outside world. If their location and identities were ever to be leaked the family could be subjected to endless harassment from the press, stalkers and even worse. After everything they’ve been through there’s no doubt they deserve peace and privacy.
There are few residents in the village but they apparently work alongside the police to do what they can to protect the family. According to the Mirror, a photographer who went to the village was practically hounded out of town by the residents.
“I was quickly surrounded by people who told me: They don’t want to talk to you, they don’t want to see you – please get out of here.”
However, the photographer was able to speak to some people from the village who informed them that the family were doing fine.
Fritzl and her children (now aged between 17 and 31) have been receiving therapy to deal with their trauma and reportedly sleep with the doors open in their house. Elizabeth herself is even married now, to her bodyguard who has become a part of the family.
Reports suggest that Elisabeth Fritzl has done a pretty good job picking up the pieces of her life, something which definitely would not have been an easy feat. Despite all the trauma, it seems that she is in a good place right now, out of the public eye and surrounded by people who look after her.