Fatal Shots in Parking Lot in Wiener Neustadt: Defendant Partially Confesses

The Turk partially pleaded guilty but did not confess to the charges of murder and rape. The 44-year-old is said to have been threatened by the later victim. The jury trial will continue on March 11, with a verdict planned for April 24.

The events could also have come from the pen of a Hollywood writer, but it has "developed into a deadly serious reality," said prosecutor Markus Bauer in the opening statement. A supermarket "was the central source of income for the family," but the accused understood "that significantly more and more profitable money could be made with the drug business." On June 8, 2023, the accused was first sent by an "organization" - the contact is said to have been made by the 34-year-old - to Bulgaria to smuggle 30 kilos of heroin by car to Austria.

During the drive, the accused is said to have threatened his companion with a weapon to turn the car back. The woman later went to the police, but "a little doubt" remained, as the prosecutor put it. During a meeting in June 2023, the accused allegedly mixed drugs into his acquaintance's drink and raped her, according to the prosecution. The woman filed a report again. Subsequently, the 44-year-old's phone was monitored, and a tracking device was attached to his car.

Accused "Was Put Under Massive Pressure"

Another drug courier trip in September 2023 reportedly "went wrong," according to the representative of the prosecution. The accused, on the other hand, spoke of a vacation trip to Turkey with his partner: "I didn't want to do drug smuggling." A bag with narcotics, which was handed to him at a hotel in Bulgaria, he said he immediately returned. When the 44-year-old returned without goods, there was "fire on the roof," Bauer said: "The accused was put under massive pressure." The 44-year-old reported threats that he should pay 300,000 euros, either by handing over the supermarket or with his life.

The Turk is said to have shot his compatriot with a pistol, which he had stolen from the 34-year-old's apartment in Vienna, from the car during a meeting on September 24, 2023, around 0:30 a.m. The scene was the parking lot of a shopping center with a cinema operation. First, the 34-year-old drew his weapon, the accused reported. He stated that he initially shot at the ground from the parked car, then "hit the gas" and "in a panic" fired twice.

Three Shots Fired from Car in Wiener Neustadt

A 40-year-old man from Chechnya, who had driven the 34-year-old to the parking lot, described that the victim collapsed after the first shot from a car and was then shot twice while lying on the ground. "Panic broke out, people fled," said the witness according to the interpreter. A 34-year-old acquaintance of the deceased, who was not yet legally convicted in connection with the threats, also spoke of three shots. Both witnesses stated that the victim did not have a weapon, contrary to the defendant's claim.

After a bullet passed through the heart and lung, the victim died on the spot. The alleged shooter was arrested shortly before 7:00 a.m. in Röszke at the Hungarian-Serbian border based on a European arrest warrant and was extradited to Austria in May 2024. Other charges besides murder include rape, drug trafficking, coercion, and offenses under the weapons law.

Defendant and Victim Were Involved in the Grocery Trade

Both the defendant and the victim were involved in the grocery trade. Because the supermarket's business was no longer doing well, he began using crystal meth in 2021 or 2022, the accused recounted. He admitted to the drug use and the killing but denied the murder charge and the rape. Defense attorney Rudolf Mayer read numerous voice messages from the later victim: Shortly before the crime, the 34-year-old allegedly threatened the defendant to kill him and his family. Mayer requested at the end of the first day of the trial to obtain an expert opinion from a shooting expert, but no decision was made on Tuesday.

The victim's brother, represented by lawyer Philipp Wolm, joined the proceedings as a private party with a demand for 15,000 euros in compensation for pain and suffering. The amount was acknowledged by the defense. The next day of the trial, chaired by Judge Birgit Borns, is scheduled for March 11. A verdict is expected at a third session on April 24.

The demanded handover of the family business was at the center of a trial at the Regional Court Wiener Neustadt on February 5. A 34-year-old accomplice of the deceased was sentenced to two years in prison, six months of which are unconditional, for attempted severe coercion, not yet legally binding.

(APA/Red)

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