WEGA Officers as Victims?
Controversial charges against a deaf-mute Viennese man (29)
Sensational indictment at the Vienna Regional Court: Shot down during a dramatic operation by a special unit, a deaf-mute Viennese man is now on trial. The prosecution views a single move with a kitchen knife as three counts of attempted murder.
The 29-year-old electrical engineer was a sports enthusiast who grew up in a loving family. His deaf-mutism never held him back. In November 2024, everything changed. The young Viennese man suddenly began acting strangely, experiencing repeated episodes of confusion. These escalated on June 15.
A day that changed the family’s life
The 29-year-old locked himself in his parents’ apartment—not for the first time. Because his father feared he might harm himself, he called 911. Even then, he specifically stated: “My son is deaf and mute.”
Two Taser shots with no reaction
Three heavily armed officers stormed into the kitchen after the apartment was opened and a flashbang grenade was thrown inside. There, the Viennese man stood in the corner with a kitchen knife pointed at his own chest. “Throw the knife away,” the WEGA officers ordered him, weapons drawn. No reaction—the 29-year-old is, after all, deaf and mute.
Two attempts to use a Taser were unsuccessful, so the man took a step toward the special unit with the knife—and an officer fired, twice. A bullet struck the 29-year-old in the chest. Already lying on the ground, the WEGA officers Tasered him once more. The 29-year-old narrowly survived after emergency surgery and days in a coma.
His attorneys, Alexander Prenner and Noah McElheney, are now asking: Was this really necessary? The Vienna Public Prosecutor’s Office’s response: an indictment against the young man for three counts of attempted murder, which, of course, justifies the use of firearms.
Lawyer considers the charges misguided
The authorities assume that the 29-year-old had the conditional intent to kill the three heavily armed WEGA officers with the kitchen knife. “There is absolutely no evidence for that,” says lawyer Alexander Prenner, criticizing the motion to commit him to a forensic-therapeutic center. Of course, his client needs psychiatric care, but the incident cannot be classified as attempted triple murder. “The mere abstract possibility of a crime is not sufficient.”
His client had, in fact, taken only one step—therefore, one cannot speak of intent to kill, especially against all three elite police officers. A jury at the Vienna Regional Court must now decide this on April 13 and 27.
This article has been automatically translated,
read the original article here.
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