Judgment Against Priest After Drug Experiment in Waldviertel Parish House

A former priest and two co-defendants were found guilty under the Narcotics Act in Krems on Thursday. The 39-year-old and a 24-year-old received partially suspended prison sentences of 22 and 15 months, respectively. Another 24-year-old received a six-month suspended sentence. The trial revolved around attempts to produce Crystal Meth in a rectory in the Waldviertel. The plan failed due to a faulty instruction. The verdicts are not yet legally binding.

39-Year-Old Wanted to Produce Drugs: Three Guilty Verdicts

In addition to the 39-year-old from Poland, who previously worked as a priest in the Waldviertel and now works as an insurance advisor, two Czechs aged 24 each stood trial. The trio pleaded guilty. A co-defendant from Iraq did not appear for the single-judge trial, and the proceedings against him were separated.

The clergyman, along with one of the 24-year-olds, allegedly ordered drug precursors - specifically ten liters of hydrochloric acid, one and a half liters of diethyl ether, and three liters of acetone - online in June and July 2024. After delivery to a parcel station in the Czech Republic, the substances were picked up and brought to the Waldviertel to produce one kilogram of Crystal Meth, according to the indictment. The drug precursors were stored in the 39-year-old's rectory apartment. Attempts to produce methamphetamine reportedly took place there on July 13 and from July 20 to 21. After the production failed, the Iraqi allegedly stored chemicals in his apartment from July 22 to 25, 2024.

Personal Crisis Led Priest to Drug Addiction

"I was in an incredible life, spiritual, and psychological crisis at the time," the 39-year-old reported of a depression. "It was the end of the world," he felt lonely in the Waldviertel and began taking drugs. He was repeatedly praised by the parish community but "knew that it was all just theater, what I was doing" and wanted to leave the church. He became addicted to his methamphetamine use, said the 39-year-old, who was defended by Astrid Wagner.

To produce drugs himself, he researched, created a guide in several languages, and ordered laboratory equipment, the former priest recounted. For the production of drugs "I was responsible," his helpers "had no idea at all." However, the attempt failed. The 39-year-old regretted what he had done because he had also disappointed his family, friends, and his former parish community.

According to the interpreter, the two 24-year-olds reported that they participated for financial reasons. No witnesses were questioned during the single-judge trial.

House Search in the Parish House

An investigation was initiated by a witness who noticed a chemical smell and discovered laboratory equipment in the 39-year-old's apartment. After a house search in the affected parish house, the case became publicly known in July 2024, followed by arrests. According to an expert report, the production of Crystal Meth would not have worked with the substances and instructions used. It was an "absolutely futile attempt," said the judge. However, the possession and importation of drug precursors is punishable. A diversion was not possible in the judge's view.

The acts were "no small matter," the judge noted in the reasoning of the verdict. Of the total 22 months, 19 were conditionally suspended for the former priest, and 13 of 15 months for the 24-year-old. The several months of pre-trial detention last year will be credited, so the men do not have to go to prison. Mitigating factors in the sentencing included the confessions, the lack of a criminal record, and the long duration of the proceedings. Aggravating for the former priest was also that he had the "leading responsibility." The defendants waived legal remedies. Since the prosecutor did not make a statement, the verdicts are not final.

There were also consequences for the priest from the church side: The man was "immediately relieved of his duties in the Diocese of St. Pölten," it was said. Furthermore, "any pastoral activity in the diocese was prohibited" for him.

(APA/Red)

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