Husband who ‘murdered his Miss Switzerland finalist wife and disposed of her body in a blender’ is led into court in handcuffs as trial begins under tight security
A father of two has gone on trial in Switzerland, accused of murdering his former beauty queen wife and disposing of her body using a blender.
Marc Rieben, 43, is said to have used a jigsaw, a knife and garden shears on Kristina Joksimovic’s body before ‘pureeing’ the remains in a blender.
The case made headlines around the world and was so dramatic that members of the public were excluded from the courthouse in Muttenz, which was surrounded by police and security.
Rieben is accused of murdering his then-38-year-old wife, is also accused of desecrating the dead and faces life in prison if convicted.
The hearing, which is expected to last throughout the week, is expected to be decided on May 13. The defendant was brought to court in handcuffs.
Following Rieben, who was wearing a dark suit and a white shirt, two of the three-person legal team, Christina Von Wartburg and Sina Selman, entered the courtroom.
With a confident and confident attitude, he placed a yellow pencil case in front of him and took out another one from inside, but this time it was blue in color.
The horrific crime is said to have been committed in February 2024 in Binnigen, an affluent village close to Basel, and Kristina’s parents, the couple’s two children and a women’s rights group have been named as civil plaintiffs in the case.
Marc Rieben, 43, is said to have used a jigsaw, a knife and garden shears on Kristina Joksimovic’s body before ‘pureeing’ the remains in a blender
The case made headlines around the world and was so dramatic that members of the public were excluded from the courthouse in Muttenz.
Kristina’s father, who was worried about his daughter not being able to pick up the children and found some parts of her body while searching for her at home, made the terrible discovery.
Due to strict Swiss privacy laws, Rieben is referred to in local media as Thomas L., while former Miss Switzerland finalist Kristina is referred to as Ivana L.
The indictment was not made public as usual due to the grisly details, and only accredited media were allowed to view the indictment, no copies were allowed to be photographed.
The Daily Mail has seen a copy of it and claims the twisted murder was motivated by Rieben’s refusal to divorce Kristina, with the piece detailing his “blatant, cold-hearted and cruel disdain for life”.
The document also alleges that successful businessman Rieben grabbed his wife by the neck, pushed her against the wall and strangled her by attaching a “ribbon-like” device to her neck.
Prosecutors say he also punched and kicked Kristina as he “viciously, cruelly and coldly” strangled her and subjected the victim to an “agonizing” death.
He is then said to have started dumping her body in the underground laundry room of the couple’s home, using a jigsaw, secateurs, a knife and finally a blender.
According to the indictment, it is said that he also removed the woman’s uterus while disposing of her body, and due to the way he disposed of the body, a charge of disrespecting the dead is also added.
The horrific crime is said to have been committed in February 2024 in Binnigen, a wealthy village close to Basel and Kristina’s parents.
Kristina and Rieben on their wedding day in 2017
Kristina has coached the next generation of models for pageants as well as businesswomen
The prosecutor’s indictment states that Rieben acted ‘knowingly and deliberately, with full awareness and with a selfish attitude and a mentality characterized by the need for control, resentment, revenge and intense rage’.
Witnesses will include Kristina’s friends who will tell how she revealed her seven-year marriage was floundering in the weeks before the murder.
Another eyewitness will be Rieben’s former partner. Rieben said that he was also attacked during their relationship and that he had a ‘violent temperament’.
Rieben, who has been detained since his arrest, confessed through his lawyers but said he acted in self-defense because Kristina had attacked him and he was worried about his two children.
In an earlier decision, the court stated that Rieben had a ‘great tendency towards violence’.
He also ‘displays sadistic-sociopathic traits, low frustration tolerance and poor impulse control’.
While the media followed the hearing via video link, only judges, prosecutors, defense lawyers, defendants and their family members are allowed into the courtroom.
Mr Rieben made an early move to ban live broadcast of the hearing, but his request was rejected by the judge, who said ‘the media had an important duty as the public was excluded’.
He denies the accusations against him.
