Phones Stolen at Nova Rock: Partially Suspended Sentence for 40-Year-Old

A 40-year-old man, who allegedly stole 31 phones as well as wallets and cash at the Nova Rock Festival last June, was sentenced on Monday at the Eisenstadt Regional Court - not final - to one year in prison, eight months of which are conditional. The man was caught on the festival grounds in Nickelsdorf (Neusiedl am See district) with the stolen goods worth around 18,630 euros. In court, he pleaded guilty.

"I am very sorry"

He had previously made a "loss-making deal" and gambled away money in the casino. Therefore, he decided to steal phones at Nova Rock to resell them in Romania, the defendant, who is a Romanian citizen, explained and insisted: "I am very sorry for what happened."

He removed and discarded the SIM cards, "because the phones kept ringing" - as well as the phone cases, a driver's license, and an ID card, because he didn't need them. The defendant kept a credit card. It was secured along with the mobile phones, which were returned to their owners on the festival grounds.

Arrest at Nova Rock

The judge found the defendant guilty of the offenses of commercial theft, suppression of documents, alienation of non-cash payment instruments, and permanent deprivation of property. His pre-trial detention since his arrest at Nova Rock in June will be credited, so he still has to serve just under two months. He must pay ten euros to a festival-goer whose phone case he discarded. The defendant accepted the verdict. The prosecution made no statement.

(APA/Red)

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