The German Private Agent and the Vienna BVT: Former Official Sentenced to Imprisonment

An ex-official of the dissolved Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and Counterterrorism (BVT) was sentenced to two months of conditional imprisonment in St. Pölten on Wednesday. The verdict for bribery is not legally binding. The 66-year-old allegedly conducted commercial register inquiries and created organizational charts for a private investigator in exchange for payment. He was acquitted of the charge of incitement to abuse of office.

"The Private Agent and the Intelligence Officer" - Generous Fee for Land Registry Data

With "The Private Agent and the Intelligence Officer," Wolfgang Handler of the Economic and Corruption Prosecutor's Office (WKStA) summarized the case on the first day of the trial on July 3, 2024. The German private agent Christina W. - "Code name Nina" - had received assignments from companies. In twelve investigations, the former official is said to have participated and received around 90,000 euros in cash as a fee, according to the indictment.

The 66-year-old was accused of bribery in several cases from 2010 to 2016. According to the indictment, the man allegedly made inquiries in the commercial and land register without official justification and created organizational charts or diagrams, among other things. However, in several projects cited by the WKStA, the 66-year-old was acquitted on Wednesday. He was also found not guilty of the charge of incitement to abuse of office in connection with tax returns retrieved by tax officials, which was also included in the indictment.

Ex-Stasi Employee Conducted Research for Novomatic

The former official met the woman, who according to the WKStA had previously worked for the Ministry for State Security (Stasi) of the GDR, in 1997. She worked as a book and television author as well as a journalist before, from the prosecutor's perspective, she was active as a business consultant on behalf of companies from around 2004. She was supposed to conduct research, for example, for Novomatic AG or for the OMV subsidiary Petrom. According to the information, the 78-year-old private agent also provided information to the BVT and was apparently considered a "source Bertram."

Trial in St. Pölten Postponed Multiple Times

Christina W., who has a relevant criminal record in her home country, is accused of bribery from 2009 to early 2016 and attempted incitement to abuse of office in several cases in 2009 and 2013. The woman, who was originally co-accused, did not appear in court in St. Pölten at the start of the trial last year due to a hospital stay. The proceedings against W. were therefore separated and initially discontinued due to the woman's poor health. The questioning of the 78-year-old witness in the jury trial had already been planned several times before it took place via video link from Germany on Wednesday.

Christina W. reported on a friendly exchange with the accused. The fulfillment of orders by the ex-official then resulted, "and I regret it to this day." She had urged and persuaded the accused. "He never wanted it, not at all. It all came from me."

"A Necessity," but Accused Denies 90,000-Euro Fee

The diagrams created by the 66-year-old for her on projects were a necessity to understand complex issues: "On the internet, I am a dinosaur." In return, she repeatedly "slipped an envelope" to the man - from Christina W.'s perspective, compensation for additional work. However, the fee amount recorded in the indictment of more than 90,000 euros was "beyond the pale," the 78-year-old estimated it herself at 10,000 to 12,000 euros.

According to the presiding judge, the 66-year-old was ultimately convicted regarding those six projects where he had previously admitted a flow of payments. However, the accused had defended himself by stating that he acted and researched in his free time and thus not officially, and generally pleaded not guilty. The court ultimately accepted a total fee of 7,900 euros for these six projects, and the amount was declared forfeited.

Long Duration of Proceedings and Blamelessness of the BVT Official as Mitigating Factors

According to the judge, the long duration of the proceedings, in addition to the blamelessness, had a mitigating effect. For this reason, six months were deducted in the sentencing. The concurrence of several offenses and the longer period of the crime were considered aggravating. The prosecution and defense each made no statement on the verdict.

(APA/Red)

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