Acquittal in court

No evidence of who torched neighbor’s car

The suspect was legally acquitted.(Bild: © Harald Dostal / 2024, Krone KREATIV)

A 40-year-old man allegedly torched a neighbor's van in Linz because the neighbor once reported him for parking illegally - at least that's what the prosecution claimed. The accused himself denied the crime and provided an amorphous explanation as to why he was suspected. The court finally acquitted him.

The incident that caused the accused to take his seat in the Linz Regional Court in a blue hoodie on Tuesday was four years ago: in March 2020, the 40-year-old Pole allegedly smashed the window of a neighbor's Citroën Jumper and threw a burning object inside the vehicle - whereupon the van burned out completely and could only be extinguished by the fire department.

At least that is what the public prosecutor's office accused the 40-year-old of, and also provided a possible motive: The neighbor in question had once reported the accused for standing in his rented parking space without permission. At the time, the 40-year-old, who had a criminal record, had to pay 180 euros because of an action for trespassing. According to the prosecution, he then became an arsonist out of anger.

Accused denies everything
However, the accused himself vehemently denied being the wanted arsonist: "I can't admit it because I didn't do it," his interpreter's bill translated at the court hearing. He was quite rightly charged with trespassing for parking in the wrong place, he said, and had no grudge against his neighbor. "I was only angry with myself because I didn't realize that it was someone else's parking space."

Affection not reciprocated
The 40-year-old was mainly accused because a witness incriminated him. The accused provided an explanation for this: the witness, a friend of his partner, had wanted to seduce him. After his rejection, she was probably angry, the 40-year-old unspokenly stated.

The court of lay assessors acquitted the accused. Reason: there was no evidence of his guilt. The verdict is already final.