1 week ago
5
VIENNA -- A tribunal successful Vienna connected Monday acquitted erstwhile Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz of making mendacious statements to a parliamentary enquiry into alleged corruption successful his government, reversing a verdict from past year successful which Kurz was fixed a suspended situation sentence.
Judges astatine Vienna's precocious authorities tribunal threw retired Kurz's condemnation aft a abbreviated entreaty hearing, the Austria Press Agency reported.
The lawsuit centered connected Kurz’s grounds to an enquiry that focused connected the conjugation helium led from 2017, erstwhile his blimpish Austrian People’s Party formed a conjugation with the far-right Freedom Party, until its illness successful 2019.
Prosecutors accused the 38-year-old of having fixed mendacious grounds successful June 2020 regarding his relation successful the mounting up of a holding company, OeBAG, which administers the state’s relation successful immoderate companies, and the assignment of erstwhile adjacent confidant Thomas Schmid to its leadership.
In February 2024, Kurz was recovered blameworthy of making mendacious statements astir the assignment of the company’s supervisory board, though not astir that of Schmid. He was fixed an eight-month suspended sentence.
That verdict followed a four-month trial. It was the archetypal clip successful much than 30 years that a erstwhile Austrian chancellor had stood trial.
“What came retired is what I person ever said — namely, that I did not archer untruths to the parliamentary inquiry,” Kurz said successful a little connection to reporters extracurricular the courtroom aft Monday's decision.
“I present person a agelong clip successful (legal) proceedings down me, and to beryllium honorable I'd similar to acceptable retired my presumption successful detail, but I inquire for your knowing that I'm going location to household and my 2 children first," Kurz added.
Judges connected Monday upheld the condemnation of Kurz's erstwhile main of staff, Bernhard Bonelli, for making a mendacious connection to the parliamentary enquiry astir his ain engagement and that of Kurz successful the enactment of OeBAG supervisory committee members. He was fixed a six-month suspended condemnation past year. Kurz said helium profoundly regrets the determination connected Bonelli.
Once a rising prima among conservatives successful Europe, Kurz resigned successful 2021 aft a abstracted corruption probe opened and has since left politics. His People’s Party inactive leads the authorities nether existent Chancellor Christian Stocker, though it finished 2nd successful an election successful September.
Kurz roseate to powerfulness with an anti-immigration level and was lone 31 erstwhile helium became the person of the People’s Party and past chancellor successful 2017.
He pulled the plug connected his archetypal government aft a video surfaced that showed the vice chancellor and Freedom Party person astatine the time, Heinz-Christian Strache, appearing to connection favors to a purported Russian investor.
Kurz returned to powerfulness successful a caller conjugation with the environmentalist Greens successful aboriginal 2020, but resigned successful October 2021. The Greens had demanded his replacement aft prosecutors announced that helium was a people of a 2nd probe into suspected bribery and breach of trust. Kurz besides denied immoderate wrongdoing successful that case.
There has been periodic speculation astir the anticipation of Kurz making a governmental comeback.
___
Moulson reported from Berlin.
English (US) ·