A woman who survived a 3,000-foot fall after her husband tampered with his parachute has remarried a fellow skydiving enthusiast.
Victoria Cilliers, 48, a mother of two, walked down the aisle with Simon Goodman, a former Royal Navy, at a registry office last weekend.
The couple began dating in 2018, three years after Emile Cilliers tried to kill her, first by tampering with the gas pipes in her house and then cutting the rigging of her parachute.
Cilliers, who was found guilty of two counts of attempted murder and a third count of recklessly endangering life, received a minimum sentence of 18 years.
Surprisingly, Victoria met Mr Goodman at the same Wiltshire skydiving club where her ex-husband launched his evil plan.
Victoria Cilliers, 48, a mother of two, married Simon Goodman, a former Royal Navy, at a registry office last weekend.
Ms Cilliers was photographed with Simon Goodman in 2020 as they walked in their hometown.
Cilliers, found guilty of two counts of attempted murder and a third count of recklessly endangering life, received a minimum sentence of 18 years.
The Mail understands that only a small group of the couple’s closest friends and family attended the ceremony followed by a low-key reception.
Today a friend said: ‘It was a close-knit, very fun and uncomplicated occasion. Vicki has been through a lot. She deserves this happiness more than anyone I know.
Goodman, originally from Somerset, served in the Royal Marines for 30 years before retiring from the army. This is the 53-year-old’s first marriage.
According to his LinkedIn profile, he is a paramedic trainee at South West Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust.
Victoria, who suffered a broken pelvis and four spinal fractures in the April 2015 fall, was later a key witness at her ex-husband’s trial.
His remarkable experience was dramatized by Channel 4 in a three-part series ‘The Fall: Skydive Murder Plot’.
In a 2020 interview with the Mail, he described his new partner as ‘his rock’ and said: ‘I try not to rely on him too much emotionally, but practically he’s brilliant.
“He has been on top of everything from the beginning. I don’t think I could have dated someone who didn’t know that. The thought of explaining my past would have been too much.
Shockingly, Victoria (pictured) met Mr Goodman at the same Wiltshire skydiving club where her ex-husband launched his evil plan.
The couple (pictured in 2020) began dating in 2018, three years after Emile Cilliers tried to kill her, first by tampering with the gas pipes in her house and then cutting the rigging of her parachute.
A veteran of 2,500 jumps and former parachute instructor, Ms Cilliers (pictured above with her ex-husband Emile) suffered near-fatal injuries in the failed jump at Netheravon airfield, the headquarters of the British Parachute Association, on the 5th April 2015.
‘We have a similar circle of friends and I’ve known him for years, which is the only way it would have worked due to trust issues.
“I’ve been overly romantic and he (Mr. Goodman) didn’t bombard me with attention or affection. I’m looking for consistency and consistency now.
“He’s not effusive or demonstrative, which actually makes me feel more comfortable.”
Victoria met Cilliers at a military base in Wiltshire in 2009. He told her he had two children from his first marriage, but did not mention two other children he had with a girlfriend.
Victoria and Emile married in South Africa, but he was a serial womanizer who indulged in casual sex with other women and long-term affairs, even with his first wife.
He then hatched a plot to kill her and pocket £120,000 from an insurance policy before starting a new life with his secret girlfriend Stefanie Goller.
But Victoria noticed the gas leak in her marital home before it proved fatal. Days later, he cut off her parachute before she embarked on a free-fall jump.
Both the main and reserve parachutes failed. But using his experience honed by 2,500 jumps, he inflated the second parachute enough to slow his descent.
She attributed her survival to “not weighing much” (about 8 kilos) as she landed in a freshly plowed field, which meant mounds of dirt partially cushioned her fall.
Victoria and Emile married in South Africa, but he was a serial womanizer who indulged in casual sex with other women and long-term affairs, even with his first wife.
Cilliers pictured in 2017 arriving at Winchester Crown Court. He continued to swear innocence and initially refused to sign the divorce papers.
Cilliers, who has continued to swear innocence, initially refused to sign the divorce papers.
It also took Victoria several years to be able to accept her husband’s guilt.
In interviews, she has admitted that she had a hard time understanding the idea that her husband, the father of her two children, might have wanted to murder her.
Cilliers is originally from South Africa and faces deportation at the end of his prison sentence. He was serving in the British Army’s Physical Training Corps (APTC) at the time of his offences.
