Final in the trial against Sebastian Kurz

The scheduled final day in the court case against ex-Chancellor Sebastian Kurz (VP) for making false statements in the Ibiza investigative committee began today with the hearing of the last two witnesses. Observers believe it is likely that Judge Michael Radasztics will end the already long proceedings in the Vienna Regional Criminal Court with a verdict.

The pleas from the WKStA and the defense attorney are scheduled for Friday before the verdict. Before that, Schmid is questioned again. He is confronted with statements from two Russian businessmen who allegedly conducted a job interview with him. One of the men has already been questioned via Zoom from the Austrian embassy in Moscow. His partner dropped out at short notice. He was then connected on Friday as the first witness of the day.

The second Russian businessman interviewed reported the same thing as his partner previously. During the conversation in Amsterdam, Schmid is said to have said that the WKStA had put him under pressure and that he did not always tell the truth when questioned – at least if you “analyze” his statements and “read between the lines”. Schmid said the investigations in Austria would make his life uncomfortable because he would have to testify against colleagues.

Fuss about Russian translation

The businessman asserted that he had no contact with Kurz’s defense attorney Otto Dietrich. His colleague stated in his interview that he had received help from Dietrich in drawing up the affidavit. There were probably other applicants for the job, but the witness did not reveal any names. This is a “trade secret”. There were also problems during the survey with the translation by a Russian interpreter.

There were fewer difficulties in understanding the additional questioning of Schmid via video link, who had already appeared as a witness in Vienna for two days. A banker friend from London arranged the job interview for him, he reported. From the beginning, Schmid was skeptical because the advertisement was very general. The businessman was in a hurry to make the decision, while Schmid wanted to get the opinions of friends and acquaintances.

When asked by Judge Michael Radasztics, Schmid said that nothing specifically was discussed about the investigation against him during the job interview – and certainly not about the alleged pressure from the WKStA, as the two Russian witnesses claim in their affidavit. Schmid, who is seeking key witness status in the ÖVP survey case, also ruled out the statement “I am good to the people who are good to me.” At least he did not rule out the possibility that Kurz might have been mentioned in the conversation.

As was the case at the start of the trial on October 18 last year, media interest in what was probably the last day of the trial was enormous. The police presence in and in front of the Grand Jury Courtroom was also increased again, and sniffer dogs searched the hall before the start. Due to the two witnesses still to be questioned and the subsequent pleadings planned, a verdict is not expected until the late afternoon or even evening.

Judgment as an intermediate step

If there is a verdict, then this should only be an intermediate step in the process anyway – depending on the outcome, both the prosecution and the defense have legal remedies available.

Since the proceedings are conducted by a single judge, the appeal options are extensive – appeals can be made on grounds of nullity, guilt and punishment.

You can follow the final day of the short trial in the live blog:

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