Tyrolean on trial

Crazy chats with Hitler beard and Jesus time travel

On Tuesday, a man from Kufstein (35) was on trial at Innsbruck Regional Court on charges of incitement to hatred after sending 30 messages with Nazi content. The jury had to make up their minds about some bizarre ideas.

From September 2018 to February 2022, the local man undoubtedly sent relevant comics or selfies with Nazi references. In one, for example, Jesus traveled back to 1934 and "transformed" into Adolf Hitler, while others compared Felix Baumgartner's "ascent with gas" to Hitler - completely crazy worlds of thought. The accused also sent photos of himself with a moustache trimmed into a "Hitler moustache" several times - to individuals and in group chats.

"Not really thought about it"
"I'm not a Nazi," the man assured Judge Andreas Mair. Rather, he had "made a nonsense" and "not really thought about it".

Some chat messages clearly show that they knew they were violating the Prohibition Act.

Richter Andreas Mair

Mair only accepted this to a limited extent: "Some chat messages clearly show that they knew they were violating the Prohibition Act." The man finally admitted this. "Nevertheless, I think Hitler and the Nazi era are terrible," he emphasized. "No matter what the reason was, the defendant accepted that the news could advertise National Socialism," said the public prosecutor. His defense attorney suspected "simply recklessness and stupidity".

After a very short deliberation, the eight jurors decided on the charge of re-activation. The Unterländer was sentenced - not legally binding - to a 6,000 euro unconditional fine and ten months' conditional imprisonment. Will this be a lasting lesson for him?