Not legally binding

Senate of lay judges rules today in the Anna (12) case

Defendants on the first day of the trial.(Bild: Gerhard Bartel)

The largest complex of the disturbing case surrounding the alleged group abuse of Anna, who was only twelve years old at the time, in Vienna-Favoriten enters its final phase today, Friday. After a two-day trial, all ten boys will not be legally acquitted.

The second day of the trial begins with the questioning of an underage witness who is said to have been present during one of the assaults. He himself cannot be prosecuted due to his youth. "Have a nice evening," the boy says to the media representatives at 10 a.m. after he has finished his brief questioning.

Group assault in hotel room
Ten youths or young men are sitting in the dock in room 303 in Landl. The youngest accused is 16 years old, the oldest 21, and they are Austrian, Turkish, North Macedonian, Bulgarian and Syrian nationals. They are said to have had sexual intercourse with the then twelve-year-old Viennese girl in various constellations - including in a hotel room at the end of April 2023, where more than ten boys had sex one after the other.

One after the other, they had sexual intercourse with the child, who in their view had participated voluntarily. They did not know that Anna (name changed) was under 14. The girl herself claims to have said "no". However, as she felt inferior to the boys, she went along with them. She was neither threatened nor beaten during the assaults.

All ten: "Not guilty"
There is no sense of injustice among the boys. In a large-scale police operation involving 75 officers, they were taken from their children's rooms at 4 a.m. on February 29, 2024 and questioned. Only one of them was briefly remanded in custody for resisting the authorities. All ten defendants pleaded not guilty on the first day of the trial.

Lawyer Sascha Flatz represents the victim Anna.(Bild: Eva Manhart)

After the minor and another witness, Anna's ex-boyfriend testified on Friday. Because he was more than 36 months older than the then 13-year-old, the Afghan was sentenced to a conditional prison sentence in March for aggravated sexual abuse of minors. He had started the case by reporting it to the police. As a witness, he said almost continuously: "I don't remember" and "I can't remember."

After the juvenile reports are read out, in which therapy is consistently recommended for the accused, the public prosecutor takes the floor again: "The offense is not about the use of violence. You violated the sexual integrity of the victim. You disregarded her will. They instrumentalized her in a certain way during these acts." The boys had shown no remorse, no reflection. She appeals to the senate of lay judges: "It's not about a deterrent sentence or making an example. It is primarily about showing the defendants the injustice of their actions."

It is not about a deterrent sentence or making an example. It is primarily about showing the defendants the injustice of their actions.

Staatsanwältin in ihren Schlussworten

Lawyer Mirsad Musliu, defense counsel for the third defendant, has clear objections: "It is clear to me that the nation's sympathizers are not sitting here. And the child is a victim, even if not in the criminal sense. I know it's morally reprehensible. Did they take advantage of the girl? Yes. But they didn't do anything until she said yes." Just like his colleagues, he is demanding an acquittal for his client. Defense lawyer Manfred Arbacher-Stöger says of the fifth defendant: "I have never been so convinced in an act that someone is innocent as I am here."

Contradictions lead to acquittals
The jury deliberates for an hour. The result: all ten boys are acquitted of the charges. Not legally binding. In his reasoning, the judge mentions many inconsistencies in the victim's testimony. For example, a witness, the girl's best friend, had painted a completely different picture. There were also chats in which Anna apologized to her boyfriend at the time for her past "She was in a situation in which one should never find oneself. Especially not as a twelve-year-old girl." 

However, the presiding judge did not find any deliberate false accusation: "It was not a malicious story, that she wanted to do something bad to someone." At the end, he says: "It was not possible for the panel of lay judges to reach any kind of guilty verdict here." This means that the last trial in the case has now ended with non-appealable acquittals ...