"Hunting affair" surrounding Benko

Dornauer: Judiciary initiated preliminary proceedings

Georg Dornauer is now also up against the law.(Bild: Christof Birbaumer)

In the inglorious "hunting affair" surrounding René Benko, which also involved Georg Dornauer, still deputy governor of Tyrol and still head of the SPÖ provincial party, the Innsbruck public prosecutor's office has now officially opened an investigation. 

The public prosecutor's office in Innsbruck has now officially opened an investigation against Georg Dornauer, still deputy governor of Tyrol and still leader of the SPÖ provincial party. "On suspicion of violating the weapons ban", as spokesman Hansjörg Mayr confirmed to the "Krone" newspaper late Friday morning.

Explosive photo gives rise to initial suspicion
The police have been tasked with the investigation. A photo of a hunting trip in Styria with bankrupt René Benko and a Tyrolean hotelier friend, which was made available to the "Krone", had put Dornauer in trouble at the beginning of the week. This explosive photo also gave rise to the "initial suspicion", as Mayr went on to explain.

There has been no breach of the law, there has been no damage and I have not accepted any invitation.

Georg Dornauer

Bild: Christof Birbaumer

The pressure was ultimately too much for Dornauer - Dornauer will step down as deputy governor and provincial party leader, but wants to remain a member of the Tyrolean parliament for the time being. "There has been no breach of the law, there has been no damage and I have not accepted any invitation," Dornauer asserted in a "personal statement" to numerous media representatives on Wednesday.

He did not shoot the deer shown in the picture in question - affidavits would prove this, among other things.

Green inquiry to the Minister of the Interior
Barbara Neßler (Green Party), member of the Tyrolean National Council, also demanded clarification in the inglorious "hunting affair". She submitted a parliamentary question to Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP). "With our parliamentary question to the Ministry of the Interior, we want to get clear answers as to whether Georg Dornauer actually acted unlawfully," she emphasized to the "Krone" newspaper.

A motion of censure against Dornauer tabled by the opposition was rejected in the Tyrolean state parliament on Thursday.

Weapon in an open car at the airport
A look back at 2019: Dornauer was banned from using a weapon after he left his hunting rifle with the magazine inserted in his car with the window open at Innsbruck Airport.

Security guards discovered the weapon belonging to the then Tyrolean opposition politician. The authorities issued an indefinite weapons ban, which was subsequently confirmed by the provincial administrative court. This was also linked to the loss of his hunting license and the confiscation of his weapon. Dornauer had only recently announced his intention to apply for a revocation.