The murder trial began on Friday at the Vienna Regional Court once morest four men who are said to have deliberately killed Djafaar H. (31) at the Jägerstrasse subway station on the night of April 20, 2023 with a 70 centimeter long machete and several knives.
According to the prosecution, Djafaar H. was deliberately lured into a fatal trap following previous arguments and killed with extreme violence. “All four defendants planned and committed this terrible, brutal and terribly bloody murder together,” the prosecutor said. The victim died as a result of multiple severing of the artery and severe blood loss, which led to cardiovascular failure. “The blade of the machete got stuck in the victim’s fibula,” the prosecutor reported.
“Armed to the teeth”
The four defendants, aged 21, 22, 25 and 29, had known the victim for a long time. All five come or came from Constantine, the third largest city in Algeria with almost 450,000 inhabitants, and had left their homeland for Europe due to a lack of professional prospects. According to the indictment, Djafaar H. was involved in a cross-border narcotics organization; three defendants are said to have worked for him in Vienna as so-called street runners and sold drugs. There are said to have been discrepancies in the billing, the accused – especially the 22-year-old – felt cheated and, according to the indictment, “agreed to finally solve their problems with Djafaar H. by force.”
- Video: Trial once morest four defendants following machete murder:
“They wanted to put an end to the whole thing,” said prosecutor Helm in her plea. For this purpose, the defendants “armed themselves to the teeth” and lured the 31-year-old into a trap in a small park near the Jägerstrasse subway station in Brigittenau. The 22-year-old initially hit him on the head twice with the machete. Djafaar H. tried to escape, received another blow and “drew a trail of blood through the entire park to the Jägerstrasse subway exit, where he collapsed and lay on the ground,” the prosecutor explained.
The defenseless and seriously injured man was then sprayed with pepper spray in the face and the 22-year-old then hit Djafaar H. with the machete “many, many times” in complete rage, the prosecutor said. The 25-year-old defendant also plunged a knife into the 31-year-old’s chest twice. Then the perpetrators left. Two witnesses who were in a nearby cafe and observed the crime came to the victim’s aid. However, the man had no chance of survival due to the number of cuts, cuts and stab wounds inflicted on him.
During the preliminary investigation, the 22-year-old basically confessed to the crimes he was accused of, although he claimed to have been under the influence of pills. Djafaar H. was also armed. The three other defendants have not yet confessed. The three remained committed to this responsibility during the negotiation. They all pleaded “not guilty.” The 22-year-old’s legal representative, Elisabeth Mace, announced that her client would confess.
