Former head of village sentenced

Corruption with local tax: conviction confirmed

One year's conditional imprisonment for abuse of office: this was the non-appealable verdict against an ex-mayor of Maria Alm. The ex-politician took legal action against this, but failed before the Supreme Court, as did the public prosecutor.

As reported, a former mayor of Maria Alm was sentenced to one year's conditional imprisonment for abuse of office at the regional court in November. The background to the case involved a deal with Clubhotel Hinterthal GmbH, which operates luxury chalets in the Pinzgau municipality. According to the agreement, the company paid a flat-rate local tax to the municipality for 13,000 overnight stays. However, there may not have been that many overnight stays - moreover, according to the law, they must be evidenced by guest cards.

Both the former head of the village and the prosecutor appealed against this ruling. The Supreme Court has now wiped away the appeals for annulment and thus confirmed the guilty verdict. The Linz Higher Regional Court now only has to decide on the amount of the sentence.