‘Pelicot 2.0’ husband ‘boasted of selling his wife for £400 per rape’ before she died from injuries sustained by the sexual assaults, relative claims
An Austrian man who is accused of drugging his wife so that he could sell her for sex allegedly boasted about how much money he made off the men who would rape her.
Robert Aichinger, 51, is being investigated after his wife Daniela, 39, was found dead on June 25 after sustaining injuries while being sexually abused.
Police say Mr Aichinger, a truck driver from Marchtrenk, was found to have exchanged messages with men revealing that he had drugged his wife repeatedly and handed her unconscious to men for payment.
The disturbing case has been called ‘Pelicot 2.0’ by prosecutors, in reference to Gisele Pelicot, a French woman who was raped by dozens of men on numerous occasions after being drugged by her husband.
Now, his younger sister claims that he once bragged to her about how he sold his wife for sex, making the equivalent of £429 per session.
The woman, who has not been named, said in a police interview that ‘strange men were constantly coming and going from the couple’s home’, Austrian newspaper Krone reports.
She added: ‘He showed me suggestive photos of [Daniela] on his cell phone and told me that [she] would bring in 500 euros per encounter. That’s how they financed their life together. Whether [Daniela] did it willingly, I can’t say.’
Her account comes after Mr Aichinger’s ex-wife revealed details of the horrific abuse she allegedly endured at his hands.
Daniela Aichinger (pictured with her husband Robert) died on June 25 after sustaining injuries while being sexually abused
Robert (pictured) is being investigated after he was found to have exchanged messages with men revealing that he had drugged his wife repeatedly and handed her unconscious to men for payment
The exterior of the home where the alleged sexual and violent abuse took place
She told police of her then-husband’s violent outbursts, which saw him attack their pet dog and punch her in the face, according to Krone.
Mr Aichinger’s ex-wife, who has not been named, said he asked her to have sex with other couples, to which she refused.
‘As a result, he sat down on me…and punched me in the face alternately with both fists,’ she said.
‘I had never experienced him like that before. Eventually he let go of me and went to sleep.’
The woman was left with a broken jaw, as well as bruising to her jaw and cheekbone.
She also described an incident in which her ex-husband had ‘severely beaten’ their dog, saying that the incident left the pet trembling in fear at the sight of him.
Mr Aichinger was arrested following the death of his current wife, who was found lifeless and covered in blood on a waterbed by her teenage daughter back in June.
Paramedics called to the scene fought desperately to save Daniela, but she was declared dead at the scene, with extensive injuries found on her abdomen and genitals, prompting authorities to carry out an autopsy as they immediately suspected foul play.
Her husband, who was intoxicated, initially told first responders his wife had an accident during ‘rough sex’, news outlet 20 Minuten reports.
However, an autopsy and a search of the man’s phone revealed that the woman’s death was linked to something more sinister.
Police found that Mr Aichinger disposed of the waterbed and deleted an app on his phone.
They also discovered he had allegedly looked up how to drug someone on his device.
Mr Aichinger drugged his wife repeatedly over an extended period and handed her, unconscious, to men for payment, including on the night she died, local media reports.
He was paid up to 500 Euros per session and would refer to his wife as ‘dead meat’ in text messages.
Sources have told the Daily Mail that hardened detectives have been left ‘shocked and speechless’ at the alleged depravity Mr Aichinger stooped to.
One murder squad detective told local media that he had ‘never experienced a case like this before’.
He has been arrested alongside a neighbour, who is accused of sexually assaulting the woman twice, including on the night of Daniela’s death.
He is understood to have left the house before she died.
Text messages between the two men were found to mention the alleged abuse of the woman, newspaper Krone reports.
On the night of her death, Mr Aichinger allegedly sent his neighbour a photo of his unconscious wife.
In one text, the woman’s husband wrote: ‘I’ll get her properly drunk. Then you can have sex with her again. The way she was whining the other day was amazing.’
Robert initially told first responders that his wife had an accident during ‘rough sex’ before he was later arrested
The couple’s neighbour (pictured) has been arrested and stands accused of sexually assaulting Daniela twice
His neighbour responded: ‘She almost screamed. You cover her mouth again.’
He also thanked the woman’s husband for ‘allowing me to use her’.
In another text, Mr Aichinger revealed his wife had not consented to the acts. He wrote: ‘She’s not participating willingly.’
He also said: ‘If it worked, if I had date rape drugs, I would regularly make her available for you to rape.’
The day before the woman’s death, Mr Aichinger also allegedly shared photos of his wife with the man, and in a separate text message wrote: ‘But he does know that it’s a real rape and she would never go along with it?’
The two men also discussed a third alleged attacker, with the plumber reportedly writing: ‘If she fights back, that’s what really turns him on. He’ll beat her until she gives in.’
Mr Aichinger replied: ‘Hot.’
Later that evening, the husband allegedly complained that his wife had not yet been rendered unconscious and wrote: ‘I don’t care, then rape her sober. Leave the door open, I’ll hit her hard in the face until she’s down.’
He later allegedly sent photographs showing his wife unconscious on a sofa wearing only a T-shirt.
When the plumber asked where he should rape her, the husband allegedly replied: ‘Living room.’
One neighbour told Austrian media: ‘We couldn’t believe it when the details emerged; they seemed like a normal couple, we had no idea what was going on behind the front door.
‘The first we knew of anything was when the ambulance arrived and then the police. The poor woman was found by her daughter, and she was badly injured. It must have been terrible for her; everyone is shocked; this is such a quiet place.’
However, another neighbour told a different story and said: ‘The wife was very nice, but he was a little strange. He asked me once if I was interested in wife swapping, and I told him no; it was a very strange thing to ask as I barely knew him.
‘He then started to tell me how he had violent sexual fantasies, and that’s when I started trying to avoid him. To be honest, even our dog found him strange; he’s quite a big and imposing man. In the end, we had to give our pet away because he would start barking when he saw him.
Officials say the woman suffered ‘unspeakable’ injuries in her final hours and bled to death, and Mr Aichinger is now in custody while the investigation continues.
Although he expressed remorse through lawyers, prosecutors are hoping for a conviction, which could see him jailed.
More suspects remain under investigation as a police probe continues.
It comes as a letter written by Mr Aichinger from prison to his teenage daughter emerged, in which he wrote: ‘Mum was the love of my life. When I look at you, I see her in you.’
A 1,000-page file – which also includes a photo of the blood-soaked waterbed – has been compiled by investigators.
The Daily Mail has also exclusively obtained the Aichinger’s statement in which he described how he met the arrested neighbour, known by his handle as ‘Jimmy’ on an Austrian fetish website called Erotik Forum.
He said: ‘I am sexually very active, which is why I am registered on the online portal. My profile name is MrBig_20, though I can no longer recall when I created the account.
‘I have previously established numerous sexual contacts with other people through this portal. I am not currently active on this site.
‘Around 2015 or 2016, I met a user with the profile name ‘Younghengst’.
‘Subsequently, we met in person a few times and also engaged in threesomes with other people from the forum. I learned his nickname was ‘Jimmy’ but I do not know his real name, not even his first name.
The case has been likened to that of Gisele Pelicot (pictured in October 2025) who was raped by dozens of men on numerous occasions after being drugged by her husband
‘When questioned, I stated that I had sexual encounters with Jimmy about five or six times. These always involved threesomes with women; we did not arrange meet-ups with men.
‘While I am slightly bisexual – meaning I occasionally let a man perform oral sex on me, anal intercourse (active or passive) with a man isn’t really my thing.
‘I clearly recognised Jimmy in the picture I was shown, and the sexual encounters with Jimmy were mostly arranged via the erotic forum.
‘There was also a threesome involving an ex-girlfriend of mine, though I cannot say today exactly when or how often that happened; it was certainly a few years ago.
‘On February 23, 2026, Jimmy messaged me on WhatsApp; before that we hadn’t been in contact for several years. I do not know why Jimmy contacted me, though I suspect he wanted to have threesomes with me again.
‘Jimmy knew that I was acquainted with one with whom we could have a threesome, which is why he contacted me.
‘I have deleted the WhatsApp chat with Jimmy from my phone. The reason is that I had met a young woman I wanted to enter into a committed relationship with and no longer engage in sexual excesses.’
On Wednesday night, speaking on Austrian TV, justice minister Anna Sporrer said she intended to tighten up sex offence laws, and a working group will meet later this month to evaluate how to make changes, adding in her interview that it was ‘about men who exert sexual control over women, until the end, even death’.
Profiler Patricia Staniek told respected Austrian daily Kronen Zeitung that Aichinger ‘exerted power and control over his victim, whom he evidently considered his property’.
Frau Staniek added: ‘The alleged perpetrator appears to have led a psychological double life, assuming two different roles, on the one hand that of an inconspicuous father and husband, the other of a tormentor. That role allowed him to unleash his evil side.’
The case follows the high-profile trial that shocked France in 2024, in which Dominique Pelicot admitted to drugging his wife Gisele for almost a decade and inviting dozens of men to rape her while she was unconscious.
He was found guilty on all charges last year and sentenced to 20 years in prison, which was the maximum possible.
He admitted his role and did not appeal.
All 50 of his co-defendants were also found guilty of various charges related to the case.
The trial drew international attention after Gisele opposed a closed hearing, a demand made by several defendants.
The court sided with her. Her courage inspired campaigners against sexual and sexist violence, and the shocking case spurred a national reckoning over rape culture in France.
The evidence included stomach-churning homemade videos of rapes and assaults that Dominique Pelicot filmed in the couple’s home in the small Provence town of Mazan and elsewhere.
