OLG has ruled

Dog crate case: perpetrators’ appeal is rejected

The boy had to wait in this box in front of an open window for hours in winter. The mother filmed the suffering.

(Bild: Anja Richter, zVg, Krone KREATIV)

The mother who almost tortured her then 12-year-old son to death in the Waldviertel region is now seeking a reduced sentence. The 33-year-old and her accomplice received 20 and 14 years' imprisonment respectively in the attempted murder trial in Krems (Lower Austria) last year. Their appeal was rejected in the short trial. 

The case from the Waldviertel region shocked the entire country: a 33-year-old had beaten, bound and gagged her son from at least July to November 2022 and repeatedly locked him in a dog crate for hours. She also starved the child. At the beginning of March 2023, the handcuffs clicked for her 40-year-old accomplice. She is said to have given detailed instructions on how to abuse the child.

The convicted mother at the trial in Krems the previous year.

(Bild: Anja Richter)

The trial against the two women took place at the end of February 2024. The mother was sentenced to 20 years in prison for attempted murder, torturing or neglecting minors, young or defenceless persons and deprivation of liberty. Her accomplice received 14 years. Both women appealed, which will be heard on Thursday at the Vienna Higher Regional Court.

Victim first received 500 euros from the perpetrators
At 9:30 a.m., the women, who are serving their sentences in Asten, are brought before the court. Their gazes are steely. "My client is trying to make amends," says lawyer Astrid Wagner, who is representing the mother. However, the woman has only been able to transfer 500 euros since her conviction. The woman who instructed her, herself a mother of four, has not yet transferred a single euro to the victim. 

The convicted mother at the Palace of Justice in Vienna on Thursday.

(Bild: Anja Richter)

Wagner explained to the appeal panel why the horror mother was fighting for a lighter sentence: "She is a helpless personality. The terrible deeds were only possible in this combination. She couldn't have done it on her own," says the lawyer, who also refers to her client's integrity.

Daniel Strauss, the accomplice's new lawyer, considers his client's grounds for mitigation to be "considerably more prevalent". Also because the 40-year-old never laid a hand on the victim herself.

"I would like to say something," says the mother during the trial, appearing clear and honest. "I'm really sorry from the bottom of my heart for what I did to my son and my family." The accomplice also speaks up. As in the trial, her words seem contrived. In an exaggeratedly sweet voice, she also apologizes and assures us that she intends to make payments soon. 

The boy only had a body temperature of 26.8 degrees
The trial proceeds quickly; after just 25 minutes, the appeal panel chaired by Judge Natalia Frohner retires to deliberate. Just a few minutes later, it was clear that the two women had lost their appeal. It was an act "that shocked many people", said the judge. "Because of its cruelty, its continuation over a long period of time and the way it was committed." - The emaciated and hypothermic boy had a body temperature of 26.8 degrees when he was finally admitted to hospital. The two women were motionless as they accepted the judge's devastating statements. 

The terrible deeds were only possible in this combination. They could not have done it on their own.

Astrid Wagner verteidigt die Mutter.

Bild: Bartel Gerhard/Gerhard Bartel

Investigations against two social workers are still ongoing
The case is not yet closed, even apart from the appeal hearing. The Krems public prosecutor's office is still investigating two employees of the Waidhofen a. d. Thaya district authority. There is suspicion of abuse of authority.