A Catholic nun is now facing criminal charges after allegedly stabbing herself and giving a false report.
Sister Marija Tatjana Zrno, 35, originally from Bosnia and Herzegovina, sparked a four-day investigation after telling police an unknown assailant stabbed her in Zagreb, Croatia, on November 29.
A local man took to Facebook shortly after, writing that he learned from a ‘trusted source’ that Sister Marija had been stabbed by a ‘migrant who was shouting religious slogans’.
These claims were found to be false, the Zagreb Police Department said, and stressed that they fully refuted the narrative.
Police found that the nun bought the knife herself at a shop in the city, before discovering that she likely hurt herself.
‘Police continued with detailed checks and ultimately established that the woman had fabricated the incident,’ local media reported.
Sister Marija did not suffer life-threatening injuries, but did require hospitalisation, local reports found.
Initial reports suggest that the Sister may have been suffering from a mental health crisis of some sort, but this has not been confirmed.
What legal consequences could Sister Marija face?
A criminal complaint is already being filed with the local State Attorney’s Office.
The punishment for false police claims can vary in Croatia, especially depending on whether the person responsible is suffering from a mental health episode.
She could be fined or imprisoned for up to three years. If found guilty of wasting police time, a misdemeanour, the guilty party is fined and imprisoned for a shorter amount of time.
Divisive posts circulate online after the false report
Reports of the attack being inflicted by a migrant spread quickly on social media, sparking xenophobic attacks online.
One account, Samantha Smith, falsely posted that Sister Marija had been stabbed to death, and wrote: ‘Where are the headlines? Where are the protests?
‘Where is the outrage? Why are they silent? Ah, yes. Because it isn’t “fashionable” to care about Christian lives.’
One account, linked to Tommy Robinson, claimed that the media had been ignoring the story for the ‘sake of diversity’.
Even after the truth behind the story came out, many volatile social media posts about migrants remain online.
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