The very best public prosecutor’s workplace within the Republic, which acts as a guardian of the legislation, recommends that the Supreme Courtroom (OGH) affirm the first-instance responsible verdicts in essence.
“The Lawyer Basic’s Workplace not too long ago submitted a complete, 160-page assertion to the Supreme Courtroom on the eight appeals for annulment filed by the defendants. Within the opinion of the Lawyer Basic’s Workplace, the decision ought to primarily be confirmed due to the responsible verdicts for breach of belief,” mentioned the Lawyer Basic’s Workplace spokesman, Martin Ulrich, on Monday following the assertion was delivered to the defendants’ protection attorneys.
“Intimately, the Lawyer Basic’s Workplace recommends confirming all convictions for breach of belief regarding the Buwog complicated, apart from one defendant, and all convictions for breach of belief regarding the Terminal Tower complicated regarding all defendants affected by this,” Ulrich clarified. Moreover, “convictions handed on varied defendants for varied accompanying offenses and concealment acts, a few of which have been dedicated as individuals,” the authority spokesman said.
Grasser sentenced to eight years in jail
Three and a half years in the past, Grasser was sentenced to eight years in jail following 169 days of proceedings in a sensational trial for breach of belief, falsification of proof and acceptance of presents within the Buwog affair. The case involved corruption in reference to the privatization of 60,000 federal flats owned by Bauen und Wohnen GmbH (BUWOG) by the then FPÖ finance minister and occasions within the Linz Terminal Tower case. In the middle of the proceedings, different smaller prices in reference to the Telekom affair have been included within the trial. Ultimately, along with Grasser, the previous FPÖ politician Walter Meischberger, the ex-lobbyist Peter Hochegger and the ex-Immofinanz boss Karl Petrikovics have been additionally convicted, with sentences of seven, six and two years respectively.
Starzer excluded
The Public Prosecutor’s Workplace needed to study the appeals for annulment filed by these 4 outstanding males and 4 different defendants – together with a lawyer and a Swiss asset supervisor, the previous Telekom board member Rudolf Fischer and the previous RLB-OÖ board member Georg Starzer – in opposition to their respective convictions. In its croquis, the authority involves the conclusion that the convictions for breach of belief within the BUWOG complicated are properly based, with one exception – this considerations Starzer. Though the Supreme Courtroom is just not sure by the opinion of the Public Prosecutor’s Workplace, their opinions are often taken into consideration as a result of they’re ready by confirmed consultants following a radical evaluation.
On this particular case, the file to be examined by the Public Prosecutor’s Workplace comprised 58 containers. The BUWOG complicated alone comprised 5,200 paperwork, because the authority introduced in a media assertion. The written judgment of the courtroom of first occasion was 1,280 pages lengthy, and the appeals in opposition to it totaled 1,141 pages.
With regard to Karl-Heinz Grasser, the Lawyer Basic’s Workplace believes that the responsible verdicts on the costs of acceptance of presents by officers in relation to the BUWOG case and the Terminal Tower complicated, in addition to for falsification of proof, must also maintain. In a secondary facet, nevertheless, the annulment of a responsible verdict for involvement within the falsification of proof is really useful. This considerations alleged concealment within the type of written contracts. “From our standpoint, the decision doesn’t particularly decide how Grasser contributed to this together with his actions. There is no such thing as a particular reference to the information,” defined Lawyer Basic Ulrich to the APA. Aside from this one responsible verdict, the authority discovered no flaws within the first-instance courtroom’s findings with regard to Karl-Heinz Grasser.
The identical applies to Meischberger, Hochegger and Petrikovics. Within the case of Meischberger, the prosecution sees solely a flaw within the findings concerning involvement in bribery within the Terminal Tower complicated, and within the case of Petrikovics, within the offence of bribery in BUWOG. The convictions for breach of belief ought to be confirmed for each defendants, and the one for accepting presents ought to be confirmed for Meischberger. Within the case of Hochegger, the place an unconsidered piece of proof comes into play within the Telekom complicated, the breach of belief ought to be overturned on this level. There are additionally flaws within the findings concerning bribery within the BUWOG strand and embezzlement and false testimony in a parliamentary investigative committee in 2012, in order that the convictions ought to be overturned to this extent.
Authorized power
If the Supreme Courtroom follows the Basic Prosecutor’s Workplace in coping with the appeals for annulment – there may be nonetheless no date for the presumably public courtroom listening to – the first-instance courtroom’s findings on the central allegations would develop into legally binding. Nonetheless, the judgment must be put aside for the flawed findings regarding the facet problems with the case and a brand new listening to must be scheduled on the Vienna Regional Courtroom on these factors. “To this extent, a repetition of the proceedings is really useful,” defined Prosecutor’s Workplace spokesman Ulrich. This entails “on the one hand, convictions for breach of belief in opposition to one defendant within the Buwog complicated and two defendants within the Telekom complicated, and alternatively, convictions for particular person accompanying offenses and acts of concealment,” the latter of which considerations 4 defendants and “convictions for bribery or involvement in bribery,” Ulrich said.
If the Supreme Courtroom implements these suggestions, the unique sentences would develop into out of date and the sentences must be re-determined on the finish of the brand new fundamental listening to. Because of this Grasser, Meischberger & Co may at the least hope for a discount of their sentences.
The Lawyer Basic’s Workplace additionally considers the attraction for annulment by former RLB-OÖ board member Starzer, who was sentenced to a few years in jail within the first occasion, to be completely justified. In his case, the total annulment of the decision and a brand new trial for breach of belief and bribery within the BUWOG proceedings are really useful. The Lawyer Basic’s Workplace can be suggesting that the conviction of former Telekom board member Fischer for breach of belief – the topic of the proceedings was, amongst different issues, the sponsorship of a gala – be annulled. Within the case of the Swiss asset supervisor and the lawyer, the Lawyer Basic’s Workplace recommends that the preliminary verdicts be confirmed.
This text was up to date at 12:37 p.m.
