20-year-old convicted

Celebrated after bloodbath: Two 20-year-olds sentenced

This is what it looked like outside the victim's apartment - the 30-year-old was executed with a total of 18 stab wounds and bled to death.

(Bild: Uta Rojsek-Wiedergut)

White shirt, dark pants, clean sneakers. Two 20-year-olds sit in front of the jury at the regional court in Klagenfurt looking very well behaved. But the "model boy appearance" is deceptive - darkness lurks behind it. Because Sam and Leo (names changed) are said to be behind the gruesome death of a 30-year-old man. The man bled to death from 18 stab wounds.

"In my 20 years, I have rarely seen anything so cold-blooded," said Judge Uwe Dumpelnik, shocked by the callousness of the two young adults before him. Because it is not only the crime they are accused of that is particularly cruel - the so-called "after-the-fact behavior" is also particularly cruel. But first things first.

It's a cold January evening. Sam and Leo are out with friends and meet by chance in a pub in Klagenfurt. They talk, complain that they don't have enough money for alcohol and drugs, then Sam suggests visiting a casual acquaintance. The 30-year-old Marco L. was known to have a small fridge in his apartment that was supposed to contain drugs, especially cocaine.

White shirt, dark pants, clean sneakers - but the two "model boys" had to answer for murder and aggravated robbery resulting in death.

(Bild: Wassermann Kerstin)

"We went to him from the pub," they both describe. One of the few statements that match. There are inconsistencies in everything else. When the knife came into play, what exactly was planned. The fact is that the duo showed up at L.'s house and he did not survive the visit. "I just remember being scared and stabbing him - about twice," says Sam.

Forensic scientist Alexandra Meierhofer can refute this: "There are 18 stab wounds in total - 17 in the front of the body, another in the shoulder blade, so firm that even the tip of the knife got stuck in the wound." The victim suffered a heart attack, an air embolism, several ribs, muscles and even his liver were severed. Could the young man have survived if Leo, who was allegedly standing by in shock, had called for help?

Everything was covered in blood
"We're talking about a time window of three to five minutes," says expert Meierhofer. "But the victim simply didn't get the chance to be rescued." Because instead of alerting the rescue services, both suspects ran away. Not far. And probably not particularly affected: "I went home, washed off the blood and changed my clothes," the main defendant describes. "It was all covered in blood. Then I had my girlfriend drive me back into town." "You left again after such an experience?" a professional judge asks. "Yes, I did, I had arranged it with friends." 

I went home, washed off the blood and changed my clothes. Then I let my friend drive me back into town.

Angeklagter (20) vor Gericht

Long prison sentences
It doesn't take the jury very long to reach their verdicts: Sam is found guilty of murder and receives 17 years in prison; his accomplice gets away with just under twelve years in prison as a contributory offender for the aggravated robbery - not legally binding.