Niece Hidden from Police: Viennese Man Sentenced to 22 Months for Child Abduction and Rampage

A 30-year-old Viennese man was sentenced to 22 months in prison on Wednesday afternoon for hiding his eleven-year-old niece, who had been missing for days, from the police in January and behaving aggressively during the operation. The trial was held before a jury because the accused was also charged with re-engagement due to a swastika tattoo. The verdict is not final.

Accused threatened those present in the courtroom: Police intervened

Before the verdict was announced, the man threatened female spectators of the trial with murder, prompting the presiding judge, Christina Salzborn, to alert the police. The jury's decision was announced under police protection. In addition to child abduction, the 30-year-old was also convicted of resisting state authority and serious property damage. He was acquitted of the charges of Nazi re-engagement and bodily harm. Furthermore, outstanding prison sentences were revoked.

Eleven-year-old sought protection with uncle

The child, who lives in a supervised residential community, had repeatedly gone missing. This was also the case at the beginning of January, which triggered a massive search operation. The eleven-year-old's photo was even used on flyers and in the media. The girl suddenly appeared at her uncle's apartment door in Döbling on the evening of January 19 and asked to be let in. "She said she was being mistreated at school and that those in the home were doing nothing about it," said the accused. He took the child in because he preferred her to be safe with him rather than "on the street in winter or with people who don't mean well for her," said his lawyer Sonja Scheed. The 30-year-old also reported that the child had been with an older man who allegedly drugged and raped her.

Child hid in drawer of bed bench

However, because the girl told a friend in a chat that she was staying with her uncle, the police soon showed up at the door. The 30-year-old, who has a severe addiction problem with alcohol and drugs, then said that she had to leave. The child did not want to and hid with his help in the drawer of a bed bench, where she was quickly found by the officers. "They pulled her out violently and then she said: 'Ouch, ouch,'" the defendant recounted. He then insulted and threatened the police officers.

According to an officer who was significantly injured during the operation, the accused took a fighting stance and charged at the officers. "He said we shouldn't attack the child," said the officer, who ended up with a dislocated shoulder and a torn bicep tendon, in the witness stand. The eleven-year-old, who remains in the care of the Vienna Child and Youth Welfare (MA 11), refrained from testifying.

30-Year-Old Largely Confesses at Trial

The 30-year-old, who largely pleaded guilty at the trial, was arrested. A police lawyer who had interrogated the man discovered a swastika tattoo on his neck, which he had recently had done by an acquaintance. "I was heavily intoxicated and on drugs," he said. He wanted to create it differently, "but I was unlucky to be arrested the next day." The tattoo machine had been purchased by the friend from a Chinese online platform. In the meantime, the area has been covered up and now shows a dice.

Later in the holding cell, he broke a lamp with the mattress and then also cut open a mattress with the shards. He denied having also punched a hole in the wall: "That was already there." He had drunk twelve to fourteen beers that day, consumed an entire bottle of Psychopax drops, and other addictive substances. "I become aggressive on benzodiazepines," the man said.

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.