New trial starts

René Benko and the expensive watches in the secret vault

The second trial against René Benko concerns the contents of a safe that was seized from relatives of his wife in the Tyrolean town of Pfunds.(Bild: C.Birbaumer Audemars Piguet(Symbol))

The second criminal trial against the fallen former Signa boss starts in Innsbruck on Wednesday. His wife Natalie has been charged by the WKStA as a contributory offender. It will be a reunion before the criminal judge for the former celebrity couple. 

54 days ago, real estate juggler René Benko was sentenced to two years in prison in Innsbruck without a final conviction. On Wednesday, he will have to take his seat in the jury courtroom again. This time together with his wife Natalie. The 48-year-old is once again accused of fraudulent criminal activity, to which his wife is said to have contributed. The damage is said to amount to more than 300,000 euros.

According to the 18-page indictment by the WKStA, the Benkos "presumably decided at the beginning of 2024 to remove particularly valuable and highly valued assets and cash from the access of creditors and to hide them outside their own home and thus 'bring them to safety'".

The case concerns 120,000 euros in cash, cufflinks and eleven expensive wristwatches, which he is said to have stashed in a safe in the home of his wife's relatives.

He claims to have given the watches to the children 
A former bodyguard of the Tyrolean family had testified that safes, which he believed to be filled with valuables, had been taken to the house of Benko's wife's relatives, among other places. The officials found what they were looking for in Pfunds.

The responsibility so far: the wife had ordered the safe and had it installed for security reasons. Benko had given eight watches as gifts to his sons and borrowed them occasionally; a further three had been gifts from guests that his wife had given to her charity foundation. For the couple, it will be a reunion before the criminal court in Innsbruck. Natalie B. was not allowed to visit her husband's home.

The seized safe.(Bild: zVg)

Intensive year of court proceedings ahead
Regardless of the outcome of the Tresor trial, René Benko must prepare himself for an intensive year in court in 2026. In October, SOKO Signa completed a 606-page final report on the so-called money carousel. In the summer of 2023, Benko is alleged to have circulated 35.35 million euros, which came from Swiss co-investors, in order to give the appearance of setting a good example with his Benko Family Private Foundation in a capital increase.

The accusation is one of serious fraud. Benko himself denies the allegations and the presumption of innocence applies. Judicial insiders would not be surprised, however, if this soon led to an indictment.

Explosive final report on Benko's weapons
In the meantime, the WKStA has also received a final report on the subject of weapons. The passionate hunter is once again suspected of having hidden assets from his creditors.

On October 10, 2023, a few months before the billion-euro bankruptcy, Benko is said to have sold "six firearms (shotguns and rifles) originally purchased by him" to the subsidiary of a Benko foundation for 100,564.20 euros. The investigators state that "these long guns were never actually handed over to the buyer, but remained at the disposal of René Benko free of charge and he, René Benko, continued to dispose of the weapons like an owner."