Alleged Sexual Offenses Against Twelve-Year-Old: Trial Starts on September 25 in Vienna

Starting September 25, nine teenagers and a young adult will be tried at the Vienna Regional Court for multiple sexual offenses against a now 14-year-old girl, whose case has repeatedly occupied the Gray House. The defendants, aged 16 to 21, are accused of having performed sexual acts against the declared will of the then twelve-year-old between March and June 2023. Some of the boys had only recently reached the age of criminal responsibility at that time.

Defendants at Large

The offenses of sexual coercion and violation of sexual self-determination are incriminated. All defendants are at large. The trial is scheduled for two days. The verdicts are planned for September 26.

According to the indictment, the assaults, which allegedly took place in close succession, occurred in a park and stairwell as well as in a rented hotel room, where several boys had intercourse with the girl. They are said to have ignored her repeated statement that she "did not want this." The defendants deny this. They have so far claimed that the sex was consensual and that they believed the girl was over 14.

How credible this is, is a question of evidence assessment and is up to the court. Reportedly, the Vienna Public Prosecutor's Office (OStA) as the authority with the power to issue directives insisted on the indictment. According to APA information, the Vienna Public Prosecutor's Office initially had concerns insofar as an indictment is only to be filed by law if the prosecuting authority assumes a conviction probability of more than 50 percent.

In the case of the affected girl, who has been repeatedly incorrectly referred to by tabloid media as the victim of an alleged gang rape, the prosecution has already "gone under" with two indictments. In early December, a jury at the Regional Court concluded that there had been "completely consensual" sex and no violence, as emphasized in the reasoning. It was stated that it was "not recognizable" to the teenager that the girl did not agree to the intercourse. In early January, a 17-year-old was acquitted on the principle of doubt. "He could assume that she did it voluntarily," the presiding judge stated in this case. Although the girl may have had "an internal rejection," it was "not proven that this was recognizable to the defendant," and in doubt, it was "not ascertainable" that violence had been used, it was said.

Ex-Boyfriend Convicted

However, the now 18-year-old ex-boyfriend of the girl was convicted. On March 24, he received a 15-month suspended sentence for sexual abuse of minors and coercion because he had consensual sex with her multiple times after her 13th birthday, knowing her still childlike age. Sex with persons under 14 is also prohibited for teenagers if the age difference is more than 36 months.

(APA/Red)

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