Blackmail trial

“If there’s no sex, there’s no money!”

The panel of lay judges believed the women who had been threatened and sentenced the man to four years' imprisonment.(Bild: HS, Krone KREATIV)

An unemployed man from southern Burgenland manipulated, threatened and beat two women. He has a child with one of them, the other is pregnant. The man demanded questionable contracts.

The 34-year-old is brought from prison for trial at Eisenstadt Regional Court. He is currently serving a prison sentence for fraud and a second one is pending. He has four other previous convictions, including two for attempted assault. "I've partially confessed," says the accused, who is said to have assaulted two women.

Beaten and threatened
The first is his ex-partner, with whom he also has a daughter. "When we went for a walk, I had to keep my head down so that I couldn't look at other men," says the woman whose life was allegedly controlled: "I wasn't allowed to meet up with relatives or friends. He deleted my accounts on my cell phone." He beat her and threatened her. "I'll kick you in the stomach," he is said to have said during her pregnancy.

"Otherwise I'll just post nude photos of you online" 
A "contractual agreement" between the two sounds particularly perfidious. If they don't have sex at least four times a week, the recipient of emergency assistance won't pay for the girl's diapers. "She agreed to it," says the man from southern Burgenland, who has accumulated debts of 30,000 euros. "But more than once a month wasn't possible." The prisoner also does not accept that he blackmailed the woman with nude photos. "She sent them to me voluntarily," which she denies: "That was also part of the contract."

Alcohol is to blame
The 34-year-old is said to have done similar things to his new girlfriend. Wanting to kick the unborn child out of her womb; raping her; attacking her mother rather than herself. "What nonsense! She's already over 50," says the accused, who denies all accusations in this case. "I told her what nonsense I used to do, partly because of my alcohol problem. She's now passing it all on as if it happened to her. It's all completely false."

The panel of lay judges listened to all those involved for seven hours and finally believed the battered souls of the women: four years in prison, legally binding.