Molitor, Simon

(d. 1564)

   German EXORCIST murdered by his wife.

   Simon Molitor, of Hesse, Germany, made his living driving out DEMONs in Westphalia and neighboring areas and had a shady reputation for fraud. He moved to Osbnabruck, and after three years of questionable activities, the magistrate there decided to expel him.

   On February 9, 1564, Molitor quarreled with his wife over some stolen money. She went upstairs and called to him to look for the missing money with her. When he arrived upstairs, she pushed him through the trapdoor and attacked him with an ax, cutting off his head and left arm. She threw the head and arm into the fire and intended to burn the rest of the body as well. Neighbors, hearing the noise and noticing the awful smell of burning flesh, went to investigate and discovered Molitor’s grisly remains. His wife was arrested and jailed. Her fatal punishment consisted of having her body torn with red-hot pincers, followed by being lashed to a wheel and broken.

   FURTHER READING:

   - Weyer, Johann. On Witchcraft (De praestigiis daemonum). Abridged. Edited by Benjamin G. Kohl and H. C. Erik Midelfort. Asheville, N.C.: Pegasus Press, 1998.