Process on Violence Against Former Partner in Vienna

"You will see, you will not believe the victim, but the defendant," said the 27-year-old's defense attorney in his opening statement. It was a "toxic relationship," with violence occurring on both sides: "The victim also hit." The relationship was characterized, among other things, by the woman's jealousy ("He is objectively a handsome man") and her gambling addiction. This led to conflicts.

27-Year-Old Not Admitting Guilt in Trial Over Violence Against Former Partner at Vienna Regional Court

According to the indictment, the 27-year-old allegedly hit his partner almost daily. Once, he is said to have extinguished a burning cigarette on her left forearm, and on March 26, 2024, he allegedly flicked a still-burning cigarette butt into her right eye, resulting in a corneal erosion. In October 2024, he allegedly locked his girlfriend in the apartment for three days, forced her into sexual acts, and forbade her from going to the toilet, drinking coffee, and smoking cigarettes.

"It was not like that at all," the defendant denied the allegations. He claimed he never extinguished a cigarette on the woman's body, and the incident with the eye was "an accident": "I wanted to flick the cigarette away, the wind blew it into her eye. I'm sorry. I immediately took her to the hospital." Once, the woman fell into a bush, but not - as incriminated - because of a push from him: "She often has balance issues. She twisted her ankle."

In May 2023, a rape of the woman allegedly occurred in a friend's apartment. The 36-year-old is said to have pressed his friend's partner onto a sofa and performed sexual acts against her declared will after an evening spent together in his apartment, while the 27-year-old "soothingly kissed" the woman, according to the prosecutor.

Rape Also Included in Charges

The 27-year-old and the co-accused 36-year-old vehemently denied this. They claimed that after the club visit, the woman made advances to the friend of her partner, and later there were affections and intimacies among the three. The sexual intercourse was consensual. "That was stupid of me," said the co-accused, "I was really only with her for seconds." However, he found it "actually ridiculous that I am here (meaning: in court, note)." He had done nothing criminal.

The 27-year-old confirmed this: "We were all in a good mood." They had "touched" each other, and he didn't remember exactly what happened next. He had "attached no significance to that evening." In one point, the 27-year-old did plead guilty. He admitted to having bitten his ex-girlfriend once. This was preceded by an argument.

Trial on Violence Against Former Partner Continues on Friday

The trial will continue on Friday. Then, the contradictory interrogation of the woman, prepared during the investigation and now excluded from public view, will be discussed, as she will no longer testify as a witness. When asked how he explained her accusations, the 27-year-old said it was because he had ended the relationship: "She threatened me that she would tell the police something if I left her and didn't stay with her."

(APA/Red)

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