"Gunkl" Charged

He “sold” a child, then blackmailed: Shocking Details

In a voluntary confession and a video, cabaret artist Günther Paal admitted to sexual acts with a child and the possession of child pornography.(Bild: APA-Images / First Look / Hubert Mican)

In the abuse scandal surrounding Austrian cabaret artist Günther Paal—better known as “Gunkl”—one horrific revelation follows another. Not only did the artist admit in a video to both committing sexual acts on a girl who was five years old at the time and to possessing child pornography, but his lawyer also said that the girl had been “brought” to Paal by her own mother and grandmother. Before they pressured him into paying a total of 189,000 euros in hush money.

There are three—not yet final—charges in this tragic criminal case, which the “Krone” first reported: against 64-year-old Paal, a 42-year-old woman, and her 62-year-old mother. The two women are in pretrial detention. The charge: aggravated extortion. The mother-grandmother duo is alleged to haveextorted a total ofnearly 190,000 euros from the cabaret artistin several installments. Before the final installment was handed over, the artist turned himself in and filed a complaint; the 42-year-old was arrested as she was about to receive 30,000 euros. The girl’s grandmother has been in pretrial detention since July as an alleged accomplice.

Met Sex Workers Through an Ad
According to “Gunkl’s” attorney, Florian Höllwarth, Paal and the two women—who were sex workers—met ten years ago through an ad. The three had been in contact for about a year, and even back then, the payments had been steadily increasing until the artist had had enough. 

It was not a case of rape, and it was a one-time incident. Some of the allegations date back 13 years.

Florian Höllwarth vertritt den beschuldigten TV-Star.

In 2024, Paal was contacted by the 42-year-old woman with a proposal to meet again as a threesome; in the course of this, he also came into contact with the woman’s child. According to his account, the girl was “brought to him” during this encounter; in early 2025, the “one-time assault” on the girl—who was now five years old—took place in Paal’s apartment.

At first, the amount was between 200 and 300 euros; in the end, it was 30,000
However, the girl’s 42-year-old mother is said not to have gone to the police, but rather, together with her own mother, to have pressured the artist into paying large sums of money. According to Höllwarth, the demands initially were for him to pay 200, then 300 euros for the child, after which the demands reportedly increased steadily.

Threatened with Publication of Photos and a Violent Brother
According to the indictment, the two women threatened Paal with publishing photos purportedly showing the abuse of the girl. However, such images likely never existed. The women are also said to have threatened him with their violent brother or son, who, according to his attorney, knew nothing of the scheme.

When the final installment of 30,000 euros was handed over on June 30 at Vienna Central Station—following Paal’s police report and voluntary confession—the 42-year-old was initially arrested by an undercover investigator from the State Criminal Police Office, and her mother was arrested on July 6 after her return to Vienna.

Name Disclosure

You may be wondering why the suspect’s name was not initially mentioned in the first article. To explain: In the Teichtmeister case as well, the “Krone” knew long before the indictment was filed that the serious allegations concerned him personally. Nevertheless, we decided to report the story anonymously during the initial stages of the investigation.

In the current case, ORF has made the name of its former star public. Furthermore, charges have been filed. Therefore, we, too, are naming the alleged perpetrator.

As the legal representative of the two women, Werner Wendt, explained, the 42-year-old has “fully admitted to the allegations,” while her mother has “largely admitted” to them. He told the APA that the two Slovak women had maintained a “very close, family-like relationship” with Paal.

Paal intends to “accept any punishment that comes his way without contesting it.”
The accused women are in pretrial detention due to the risk of them committing further crimes or tampering with evidence; Paal remains free. The charges against all three—who are presumed innocent—were filed on Wednesday. The suspects have 14 days to file an objection if they wish to do so. Paal is unlikely to do so; in his video statement, the 64-year-old said he would “accept without objection any punishment that comes his way.”

My clients are distraught that the children have been taken away. The mother deeply regrets all of this.

Rechtsvertreter Werner Wendt von der Kanzlei Mag. Hubert Wagner

Bild: Zwefo

Girl and her brother taken from their mother
The five-year-old girl is in the care of MA 11, the Child and Youth Welfare Services, along with her seven-year-old brother. “They are doing well,” said Ingrid Pöschmann, spokesperson for the municipal department. According to the women’s legal representative, however, the removal of the children is not related to the current investigation.