Graz Rampage: Wrongly Accused Man Defends Himself

The Styrian, who was mistakenly thought to be the Graz shooter on some social media due to a similar name and was branded as the alleged perpetrator in the days following - receiving thousands of messages, including death threats - is taking action against the hate he experienced online. As his lawyer Michael Rami informed upon APA request, initially 15 to 20 people have been sued for defamation. Several more are likely to follow.

The defendants had partially shared posts with the name and photo of the young Southern Styrian under their real names on platforms like Facebook and TikTok, thereby "essentially spreading the accusation that he was a multiple child murderer," as Rami explained in an interview with APA. It should have been clear to everyone that his client could not have been involved in the bloodbath of June 10, in which nine students and a teacher were killed, as the shooter had taken his own life in the school building. Just because the rampage shooter and the young Southern Styrian had phonetically similar first names and the first letter of their last names was identical, the 22-year-old suddenly and to his horror appeared on internet platforms as an alleged multiple murderer.

Plaintiff Demands Punishment, Compensation, and Publication of Judgment

"Initially, those who were obviously reachable without much investigation were sued. Each is demanded to be punished, compensated, and the judgment published," Rami stated. This could become costly for those who spread the defamatory posts via their Facebook or TikTok profiles. They are considered media owners under the law. If found guilty of defamation, they face not only a prison sentence of up to one year or a fine of up to 720 daily rates. Under the Media Act, compensation would also be due, with the compensation amount ranging from 100 to 40,000 euros. In cases of "particularly serious effects of the publication," as the law states, it can amount to up to 100,000 euros.

"The claim that my client was the Graz shooter who murdered several children is the worst imaginable accusation. Everyone who spread this will be pursued with the full force of the law," Rami affirmed. He made it clear that his law firm will approach social platforms and attempt to trace those posters who spread the defamatory content under a pseudonym through registration data.

Falsely Accused Styrian Takes Action Against Online Hate

The individuals who have already received a lawsuit and will likely soon receive a main hearing date are people of all age groups and from different social backgrounds. Among them is a 66-year-old retiree as well as an academic and project manager. However, Rami has withdrawn the lawsuit against an 86-year-old from Vorarlberg. He was able to credibly assure that he was not behind a post in a Facebook group in which the 22-year-old was labeled as the shooter. The 86-year-old only owns a senior mobile phone and insists he does not know what Facebook is. "That sounded credible," Rami admitted.

(APA/Red)

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