Trial in Feldkirch

Toxic relationship ended in court

In court, the ruthless bricklayer dismissed his actions as trivial, and he didn't want to remember many of them exactly.(Bild: Chantall Dorn)

A man from Oberland has been sentenced to a conditional prison sentence for psychological and physical violence against his partner and her son at Feldkirch Regional Court.

"He was my love, my life", said the 44-year-old woman in tears during the trial. This is all the more incomprehensible when you know about the violent tendencies of the bricklayer now charged with grievous bodily harm. The woman reported constant humiliations, slaps and punches. "We always had massive arguments." The reason for this was not only his drug use, but also his infidelity. "Once he grabbed me and threw me against the box. I was off sick for three months after that because my hand had to be splinted." That was in the summer of 2021, a few months after the two became a couple. They broke up several times but always got back together in the end.

Also abused his son
However, the accused was not only violent towards his wife. The underage son is also at the mercy of the corpulent man's massive outbursts of rage. Last summer, when the boy once again tried to settle an argument between his mother and her boyfriend, the man lashed out at the 15-year-old and put him in a headlock. The boy desperately fights back. Then the accused grabs him by the scruff of the neck and bangs his head against the wall several times. The mother's desperate attempts to free her son fail. She is also beaten and blood flows. To add to the tragedy, the little sister also witnesses the violence. In the end, the man lets go of the slight boy. He gets away with a black eye, a jaw injury and a concussion.

No trace of remorse
During the trial, the defendant played down his actions and only spoke of "occasional slaps in the face". He answered the judge's question as to why the victims should incriminate him to such an extent with: "Perhaps out of revenge."

Prosecutor Simon Mathis, on the other hand, found very clear words in his summation: "The relationship was clearly toxic. There is no remorseful confession by the defendant, but a tendency towards perpetrator-victim reversal." The sentence: seven months' suspended imprisonment and a fine of 9600 euros. The council awarded the two victims a total of 400 euros in compensation for pain and suffering.