A Slovenian woman has been found guilty of insurance fraud after intentionally sawing off her hand with the help of her partner to claim a windfall of more than $1m.
Julija Adlešič, 22, and her partner Sebastian Abramov were sentenced to two and three years respectively in Ljubljana District Court on Friday, September 12 (local time).
Adlešič claims that it was an accident that happened while cutting trees, however, her boyfriend had been researching prosthetic hands in the days leading up to the incident.
Abramov deliberately left the hand behind when they went to the hospital so that the injury would be permanent, however, the police retrieved the hand and it was reattached.
Evidence that Adlešič had taken out five insurance policies the previous year further consolidated the prosecutor's case. If the pair had been successful, they would have received a pay out of more than NZD$1.75m.
During the trial, she claimed that she would never purposefully mutilate herself.
"No one wants to be crippled," she told the court. "My youth has been destroyed. I lost my hand at the age of 20. Only I know how it happened."
The couple is reported to have got engaged after their arrests, increasing the already intense media coverage, according to Total Slovenia News.
Abramov had been in custody awaiting trial while Adlešič was under house arrest. His mother and father have also been found guilty and got a one-year suspended sentence on two-year probation.
Abramov is also being tried for the murder of a previous girlfriend Sara Veber in 2015.
