A four-day police investigation in Zagreb has concluded that a Croatian nun who claimed she was stabbed by an unknown assailant in late November had in fact inflicted the wound on herself, according to a police report published by the Zagreb Police Department and cited by Catholic News Agency.
Authorities are filing a criminal complaint against 35-year-old Sister Marija Tatjana Zrno after determining that the weapon used had been purchased by the nun herself. According to the police report, Zrno initially told investigators that “an unknown perpetrator approached her with a knife and stabbed her,” after which she was treated at the Sisters of Charity Hospital in Zagreb for what the hospital characterized as minor injuries.
However, police allege their investigation “confirmed that Zrno purchased the weapon herself at a store in the Zagreb area,” and that “she inflicted the injury on herself,” according to Catholic News Agency. The report further states that she “falsely reported the criminal offense with the intent of misleading the police,” despite knowing the legal consequences for filing a false report.
The nun, a member of the Sisters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul Croatia and a religion teacher at an elementary school in Zagreb, was hospitalized on Nov. 28 after reporting that she had been attacked in the city’s Malešnica neighborhood. Hospital officials told Net.hr that she entered the surgical ward around 3 p.m. with “an injury inflicted by a sharp object in the abdominal wall area,” noting the wound was not life-threatening. Police said she was discharged on Dec. 1, according to the report.
The incident initially gained national attention as speculation spread on social media and in some media outlets. Catholic News Agency reports that unnamed sources had claimed the attacker was a migrant shouting “Allahu Akbar,” but Zagreb police now say their criminal investigation “found those claims to be false” and “fully refutes those claims.”
Government officials responded quickly once the case became public. The Croatian government’s official X account stated that police and medical teams “took all necessary measures and actions and launched an investigation.” The Ministry of Science, Education, and Youth made contact with Zrno’s school principal to provide a psychological crisis intervention team for students and staff.
Zagreb Mayor Tomislav Tomašević told local media that his primary concern remained the nun’s recovery, while also urging police to “fully investigate the incident and publish their findings as soon as possible,” noting that many citizens had been distressed by the reports, according to Catholic News Agency.
As public emotions intensified and some social media reactions turned hostile, a Croatian priest urged Catholics to respond with Christian charity rather than anger. Father Stjepan Ivan Horvat wrote on Instagram that Catholics are called to grow in love for God and neighbor. He cited the words of Jesus in John 15:18-20, writing: “If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first… If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you,” according to Catholic News Agency.
Church authorities, including the Archdiocese of Zagreb and the Episcopal Conference of Croatia, have not yet publicly commented on the findings.
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