Victoria Cilliers is a skydiver who is mainly known for having survived a murder attempt on her in 2015 when both her main and reserve parachutes were interfered with.
Early life and marriage
editVictoria lives in Wiltshire, England, and is a physiotherapist for the Ministry of Defence.[1]
Victoria's ex-husband Emile Cilliers was born in South Africa in 1980 and moved to the UK in the early 2000s. He has four children from previous relationships. He met Victoria in 2009, and they have two children. Their relationship deteriorated before his 2015 attempt on her life.[1]
She became a successful parachutist and instructor, with 2,654 jumps.[2]
Murder attempt
editDuring a parachute jump on Easter Sunday 2015, both her standard and reserve parachutes failed to open. She fell 4,000 ft to the ground. She survived the fall despite life-threatening injuries[1] because she landed on a soft, newly ploughed field.[2] It was the second attempt on her life in less than a week.[2]
Emile Cilliers was convicted of her attempted murder in May 2018[3][4] after a previous trial failed to reach a verdict.[5] He was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 18 years.[1] He was also convicted of tampering with a gas valve at their home.[4]
Media
edit- I Survived is an autobiographical memoir published by Pan Macmillan[1]
- The Parachute Murder Plot is a 2018 documentary film by All3Media about the murder attempt, with Fiona Bruce
- The Fall: Skydive Murder Plot is a 2024 Channel 4 television documentary about the murder attempt (originally commissioned as The Woman Who Fell To Earth[6])
- In September 2024 Victoria Cilliers and the Parachute Murder Attempt by Twenty Two Crime Podcast.[7]
See also
edit- Malfunction (parachuting)
- Netheravon Airfield
- Death of Stephen Hilder, in a parachute incident in 2003
- Parachute Murder, a 2010 Belgian love triangle skydiving murder case
References
edit- ^ a b c d e "Victoria Cilliers: the true story behind the parachute murder plot". PanMacmillan.com. Pan Macmillan. Archived from the original on 2024-04-27. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
- ^ a b c Kleeman, Jenny (14 Jul 2018). "'He has the traits of a psychopath': the inside story of the parachute murder plot". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
- ^ "Parachute murder bid: Emile Cilliers jailed for life". BBC News. 15 June 2018. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
- ^ a b Osborne, Samuel (24 May 2018). "Army sergeant found guilty of attempting to kill wife by tampering with her parachute". Independent. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
- ^ Mitchell, Ben (23 Nov 2017). "Retrial ordered for soldier accused of attempting to kill wife with sabotaged parachute". The Independent. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
- ^ "Channel 4 commissions the Woman Who Fell to Earth (W/T) from Story Films | Channel 4".
- ^ "Victoria Cilliers and the Parachute Murder Attempt #ParachuteMurder #truecrimecommunity #truecrime". 6 September 2024. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
Further reading
edit- Victoria Cilliers in the Independent
- R vs Cilliers Sentencing Remarks