The former detective admitted to shooting his 50-year-old ex-girlfriend and her 76-year-old mother on May 5, 2021 in Wals-Siezenheim (Flachgau). Because of the dangerous nature of the man from Salzburg, he was committed to an institution for mentally abnormal but sane criminals. The judgment is not final. More about this in the video:
90,000 euros in damages
Defense attorney Andreas Schweitzer made no statement. Prosecutor Elena Haslinger decided not to appeal. The jury unanimously answered yes to the question of whether the murder was a double homicide. The court described the high level of violence involved in the crime and the killing of two people as a special reason for aggravation. Two relatives of the victims were awarded partial compensation for pain and suffering totaling 90,000 euros.
The presiding judge Philipp Grosser said that the court had come to the conclusion that the motive for the crime lay in the 50-year-old’s rejection of the accused. “From the point of view of the general prevention of the murder of women, the verdict has a deterrent effect. This fact was taken into account in particular when determining the sentence,” said court spokesman Peter Egger.
“Emotional Explosion”
In fact, the defender saw an “emotional explosion” in the man because the mother and brother of the 50-year-old were against the liaison. The prosecutor spoke of a planned approach and a settlement.
The third day of negotiations in the trial for double murder against the man from Salzburg started on Thursday with the pleadings. Prosecutor Elena Haslinger said, “In my view, there can be no question of a state of emergency in terms of affect.” She is convinced that the accused wanted to take revenge on May 5 for the insults suffered by the two women. “He went about it in a well-planned manner.”
“Execution by an Offended Narcissist”
The accused also settled accounts with the 50-year-old because she had reservations about the relationship. She was not prepared to take sides with the accused in front of her family. In emails, the woman also complained about the man’s intrusive behavior. “It was not without reason that she felt persecuted and observed.”
Private party representative Stefan Rieder demanded a total of 110,000 euros in compensation for two relatives of the women killed. “We are dealing with an execution by an injured narcissist,” said Rieder, referring to the term “love bombing”. “That means showering someone with love, making the other emotionally dependent. That makes it difficult for the victims to break out of the relationship.”
A “no” was not an option
A “Love Bomber” requires unconditional obedience, said Rieder. However, the accused did not achieve his goal of separating the 50-year-old from the family association. On May 5, he recognized that “she doesn’t want to anymore”. On that day, the woman no longer responded to his calls and emails. Days before, she had written to him that the chance had been lost, “please don’t contact me anymore,” the victim’s attorney quoted from the file.
But a “no” was not an option for Salzburg, said Rieder. The man waited an hour late in the evening for the 50-year-old to return home. Two pistols and 106 rounds of ammunition were in his car. “He made a conscious decision to take a gun. He ambushed her with a loaded pistol and then blew the whole magazine.” Then he changed the magazine and shot the woman in the head again.
Eleven shots from close range
At 10:30 p.m., the then 51-year-old accused drove to the house where his girlfriend lived. The mother’s house and the brother’s were opposite. First, there should have been a verbal argument with the mother. The man from Salzburg described the process as saying that she insulted him massively and tried to box him out of his daughter’s house. He fired eleven shots from his 7.65mm Glock pistol at close range. The mother received three shots and the daughter seven. The women bled to death.
In his closing words, the accused again said he was very sorry that he had brought suffering and grief to the families of the two victims. His defense attorney Andreas Schweitzer, who is also a professional detective and president of the Austrian Detective Association, was convinced that the act happened out of an emotional explosion and was not planned well in advance. He found it “too far-fetched” that “Love Bombing” had caused the double murder. The mother and brother of the 50-year-old spoke out against the relationship between the two after a short time. “They have tried everything that is possible,” he referred to the numerous conflicts that are also on record.
“A murder with a lot of emotion”
His client loved the woman and assumed that she also loved him, said Schweitzer. “The two met in secret to continue their secret affection. It was not a planned execution, but a murder out of affect with a lot of emotion.” The defense attorney also cited the “remorseful confession” as a mitigating reason.
If convicted, the penalty is 10 to 20 years imprisonment or life imprisonment. The public prosecutor’s office also requested that the accused, who had previously had no criminal record, be admitted to an institution for criminals who were of sound mind but had a higher degree of mental abnormality. The verdict is expected in the afternoon.
Source: Nachrichten
