Brutal 2015 Murder of 86-Year-Old Austrian Nun Getrude (Stefani) Tiefenbacher – Bound, Suffocated and Gang-Raped in Her Ixopo Convent.
86-year-old Sister Getrude (Stefani) Tiefenbacher, an Austrian-born nun who had lived and worked in South Africa for over 60 years doing charity work, was brutally murdered in her room at the Sacred Heart Home convent.
The attackers cut a hole in the outer fence, entered through an unlocked side door, ransacked the pantry and stole groceries, a vacuum cleaner, and R26,000 in cash. Sister Stefani was found dead on the floor next to her bed. Her hands had been bound with the cord of an electric typewriter, and she was suffocated with a wet towel. Police believed she may have been gang-raped before being killed.
This elderly White nun, who had planned to celebrate 65 years of her religious vows, was viciously attacked and murdered in the place she should have been safe.