Ottilie "Tillie" Mitkiewicz Klimek, an inhabitant of Chicago's vibrant "Little Poland" neighbourhood, earned the chilling moniker "The Psychic Serial Killer" due to a disturbing series of deaths that shadowed her life. Her narrative took a dark turn after thirty years within a difficult marriage, marked by the onset of a recurring and unsettling nightmare. In this dream, her husband, John Mitkiewicz, succumbed to heart failure in 1919, an event that was swiftly followed by Tillie receiving a considerable sum from his life insurance policy. In a twist of fate that seemed to defy explanation, John indeed passed away from heart failure that very year, and Tillie collected the anticipated insurance funds.

This eerie pattern of seemingly predicting her husbands' deaths persisted, casting a sinister aura around Tillie. A mere two months after John's demise, she entered into matrimony with Joe Ruskowski, who also suffered an untimely death. Her third husband, Frank Kupczyk, followed a similar tragic trajectory, passing away just six months after they exchanged vows. In each of these unfortunate instances, Tillie once again found herself as the beneficiary of life insurance policies, raising unsettling questions among those around her.

The successive deaths of her three husbands led Tillie's neighbours to genuinely believe that she possessed an uncanny, perhaps even supernatural, ability to foresee death. Her landlady, deeply swayed by these apparent premonitions, was so convinced of Tillie's psychic gifts that she reportedly asked if Tillie could foresee Kupczyk's death, hoping to prepare for the event by storing a coffin in the basement beforehand. This anecdote underscores the extent to which Tillie's supposed powers had captivated the local community.

In the aftermath of Frank Kupezyk's death in 1922, Tillie entered into her fourth marriage with Joseph Klimek. However, in a stark departure from the preceding events, Tillie's alleged foresight seemingly abandoned her. Klimek fell gravely ill, exhibiting alarming symptoms that defied a simple explanation. His brother, growing increasingly concerned about Joseph's deteriorating condition, made the crucial decision to take him to the hospital for medical attention. It was there that a perceptive doctor noted peculiar signs – an unusual stiffness in Klimek's limbs and a distinct odour of "garlic" on his breath. These were classic indicators, red flags that strongly suggested a sinister cause: arsenic poisoning. This observation would prove to be a pivotal point in unravelling the truth behind the mysterious deaths surrounding Tillie Klimek.

Following the suspicious illness of Joseph Klimek, authorities exhumed the bodies of Tillie Klimek's deceased former husbands. The subsequent investigation revealed dangerously high levels of arsenic in each of their remains. Tillie proclaimed her innocence despite this compelling evidence. Upon her arrest, she allegedly feigned ignorance, vaguely referring to someone else poisoning her husbands through food, stating, "She made me sick one time I want to cook dinner for you." Nellie Koulik, Tillie's cousin who had introduced her to her last husband under suspicious circumstances and later employed her, was also taken into custody.

After Tillie's arrest, a disturbing pattern emerged from the memories of neighbours and former acquaintances. They recalled instances of sudden illness or disappearance among individuals, including children, grandchildren, and husbands, who had been in close contact with Tillie or Nellie. The coroner exhumed Nellie's husband, discovering similarly alarming levels of arsenic in his remains.

Ultimately, both cousins were charged with the murder of one husband each, although some reports suggest Tillie may have been responsible for as many as 20 deaths. Tillie faced specific charges for the murder of Frank Kupezyk, which she denied throughout the trial, bizarrely blaming his demise on "bad moonshine." However, her courtroom behaviour was perceived as far from innocent, with some describing it as "damning."

Witness testimony painted a grim picture of Tillie's actions and attitude. A nurse testified that when Kupezyk was hospitalized, Tillie coldly advised that if he caused any trouble, "take a two-by-four board and hit him over the head with it." A neighbour recounted that the seemingly grieving widow requested upbeat jazz music at the local music store, Vietrola's, on the day of Kupezyk's death. Most disturbingly, during Kupezyk's funeral, Tillie allegedly reached into the casket, tugged on his ear, and chillingly declared, "You devil, you won't get up anymore!"
The jury quickly reached a verdict after only 80 minutes of deliberation, declaring Tillie Klimek guilty and sentencing her to life in prison.

Tillie Klimek's case bears a resemblance to those of Belva Gaertner and Beulah Annan, two other Chicago women of the early 20th century accused of husband murder. While a fictionalized version of their trials became the successful musical Chicago, a key difference lay in public perception. Unlike Gaertner and Annan, who were often depicted as glamorous and manipulative and garnered significant media attention and even romanticization, Tillie faced a harsher and less sympathetic portrayal. Another major difference was the incriminating nature of the evidence against Tillie.

While the evidence against Tillie was substantial, many historians and commentators believe that her lower-class status and perceived lack of feminine appeal significantly impacted the way the press and public viewed her. Journalist Genevieve Forbes famously described Tillie as "a fat, squat, Polish peasant woman, 45 years old but looking 55, with a lumpy figure, capacious hands and feet, and dull brown hair skinned back into a knot at the back of her head." This unflattering characterization likely contributed to the lack of public sympathy and the swift condemnation she received.

The story of Ottilie "Tillie" Klimek stands as a grim testament to the insidious nature of deception and the devastating consequences of greed. While her neighbours initially attributed the deaths surrounding her to a supernatural gift, the truth, revealed through careful investigation and the damning evidence of arsenic poisoning, painted a far more sinister picture. Tillie's case, though lacking the glamorous intrigue that surrounded other female murderesses of her time, serves as a stark reminder of how societal biases can influence public perception. Ultimately, the swift verdict against her underscores the gravity of her crimes and the justice served for the lives she so callously extinguished.


Reference:

• The True Crime File, Kin Daly

Written By: Md.Imran Wahab, IPS, IGP, Provisioning, West Bengal
Email: imranwahab216@gmail.com, Ph no: 9836576565