Viennese Man Convicted

Wheelchair user tied up: “I was so angry!”

The prosecution charged the 46-year-old painter with unlawful detention of the wheelchair user (stock photo). In the end, it was “only” coercion.(Bild: stock.adobe.com null)

The scene of the crime: a Viennese public housing complex. A dispute between two longtime friends escalated to the point that a rubber strap was used. In court, the two remain irreconcilable. “Who would do something like that?” the wheelchair user exclaims indignantly before the judge.

The painter and decorator takes his seat before the judge at the Landl court, dressed in full work gear: “We’ve been friends for 35 years. I didn’t mean him any harm.” Outside the courtroom, however, the former friends don’t even acknowledge each other with a glance. This is the result of the devastating dispute that took place on May 27 in a municipal housing complex in the 21st district.

It was about money...
“He called me and said I should come down and he’d beat me up,” says the 46-year-old defendant. As is so often the case, it was about money. So the Viennese man packed a rubber strap, met up with his longtime friend—who has been in a wheelchair since birth—in the courtyard of the apartment complex.

Wheelchair Tied to a Trash Can
“He just pushed me over to a trash can. That’s relatively easy to do,” says the 47-year-old on the witness stand. And then the defendant hooked one end of the rubber strap onto the wheel of his wheelchair and the other end onto the trash can. “Who does something like that?” the victim exclaims indignantly on the witness stand.

The painter defended himself: “What was I supposed to do? I can’t just hit a disabled person. I was so grumpy.” – “You wanted to harass him?” the judge presses. “Yes, sure.” After five minutes, he untied him anyway. “I wouldn’t have just left him tied up there,” the 46-year-old repeats over and over.

But it’s still coercion. The Viennese man is sentenced to five months of probation—and this is his unbelievable 14th conviction. “Given your criminal record, this is your last suspended sentence. This is your final warning,” the prosecutor warns him at the end. The 46-year-old insists that he now intends to stay out of his former friend’s way.