A jealous ex-lover has been formally charged with murder after allegedly confessing to killing an Austrian beauty influencer and stuffing her body in a suitcase that was later buried in a forest.
Patrick M, 31, was charged with murder on Monday for the death of Stefanie Pieper, 32, who was found dead last November near the Slovenia border, according to reports. The case has drawn international attention after prosecutors revealed Pieper may have been buried alive.
Pieper sent a friend a series of harrowing texts after leaving a Christmas party on Nov. 23, warning of “a creep in the stairwell,” reports indicate. She was last seen alive that night. The following day, she failed to appear at a scheduled photo shoot, behavior that immediately raised alarms among those who knew her.
“She would never have simply cancelled,” the photographer told Austrian outlet 5Minuten. The photographer then went to Pieper’s apartment and discovered she was not inside.
Pieper’s body was found approximately a week after investigators believe she was killed. She had been placed in a suitcase that was buried in a forest near the border with Slovenia. Investigators noted she was found with facial injuries, which raised the disturbing possibility that she had tried to fight her way out of the suitcase.
“It is quite possible that she was still alive when she was placed in the suitcase,” prosecutors said in March.
“However, it is equally possible that she was killed by strangulation beforehand. The autopsy could not definitively determine when the young woman died,” they continued.
Patrick M was arrested in Šentilj, a Slovenian town near the Austrian border, before being extradited to Austria to face charges. He had previously confessed to killing Pieper, attributing his actions to jealousy following their breakup.
But he now appears to be walking back that confession, reportedly admitting only to burying Pieper’s body. The shift in his account came as he was formally charged with murder on Monday.
His brother and stepfather had been accused of helping him move Pieper’s body. They will not face charges, according to reports.
Pieper had been building a following as a beauty influencer, sharing content and pursuing opportunities in the social media space. Her death has shocked the Austrian influencer community and drawn attention to the dangers of domestic violence.
The case centers on a relationship that had ended, with Patrick M allegedly unable to accept the separation. His initial confession pointed to jealousy as the driving motive, though his recent retreat from that confession has complicated the prosecution’s path.
Investigators continue to examine the exact circumstances of Pieper’s death, with the timing remaining a critical unanswered question. The facial injuries she sustained suggest a desperate final struggle, whether inside the suitcase or during the initial attack in her apartment.