A former Miss Switzerland finalist, Kristina Joksimovic, has tragically died after allegedly being strangled and dismembered by her 41-year-old husband in Basel, Switzerland.
The shocking crime has horrified the nation as disturbing details continue to emerge.
Kristina, 38, who was a finalist in the 2008 Miss Switzerland competition and winner of the Miss Northwest Switzerland pageant in 2003, was reportedly killed in February by her husband, identified in local media only by the pseudonym Thomas.
The couple, married since 2017, lived with their two children in a semi-detached home in an affluent area of Basel.
According to the Daily Mail, Kristina’s remains were discovered in Binningen, near Basel, and an autopsy confirmed that she had been strangled before her body was dismembered.
Investigators found her remains had been dismembered with a jigsaw and garden shears before being pureed in a blender and dissolved in chemicals.
Thomas, a businessman, was arrested a day after Kristina’s remains were found. He initially claimed he acted in self-defence, alleging that his wife had attacked him with a knife. However, he later admitted to dismembering her body, and forensic evidence has contradicted his claims of self-defence.
Local media reports that investigators identified “concrete indications of mental illness” and noted Thomas’ “sadistic-sociopathic traits.”
They cited his “lack of empathy and cold-bloodedness” in trying to cover up the crime. His appeal for release from custody was rejected by the Federal Court in Lausanne on Thursday.
Kristina had posted photos of a “couple’s getaway” on her Instagram account just four weeks before her death, giving no hint of the tragic events that would follow. The investigation is ongoing as Swiss authorities seek justice for the former model.