41-year-old man charged

Vienna police officer (24) stabbed in the chest

41-year-old Jordanian in his trial for attempted murder.

(Bild: SP, Krone KREATIV)

"I wanted the officers to shoot me", a Jordanian testifies in Vienna Regional Court. At the end of May, he stabbed a 24-year-old police officer in the chest on Keplerplatz in the 10th district - fortunately, a stab protection vest saved his life. The 41-year-old defendant is accused of attempted murder of the officer.

A dog bite - that was the original alert for the officers on May 24 at Keplerplatz in Vienna. A 24-year-old police officer took the pet owner's personal details; at the same time, colleagues at the hotspot in the 10th district were dealing with a rowdy drunk. Completely out of the blue, a bystander suddenly stabbed the young officer in the chest from behind. 

"Suicide by cop" due to inability to procreate
"If the police officer had not been wearing a stab protection vest, he would have been dead," summarizes the public prosecutor at the Vienna Regional Court. The 41-year-old Jordanian now faces a charge of attempted murder. His motive: he wanted to die by so-called "suicide by cop". "I was examined. It was established that I was unable to conceive. That put a psychological strain on me and then I decided to take my own life," the accused testified. 

The 41-year-old Jordanian pleaded partially guilty.

(Bild: SP, Krone KREATIV)

So he took a cab to Keplerplatz in the 10th district. Actually with the intention of buying drugs to take away his fear of committing suicide with the kitchen knife he had brought with him. But when he saw the police officers on duty, he made a momentous decision: "Then I thought to myself, if I attack the police officers now, they'll kill me. I wanted them to shoot me." He was finally overpowered with a teaser.

Bent knife and notch in protective vest
The extent of the force of the stabbing can be seen not only on the video of the crime, but also in the aftermath: The 24-year-old officer's life-saving stab protection vest had a deep notch and the 20-centimeter-long blade was considerably bent. Fortunately, the victim was not injured. But nevertheless: "He is still suffering from the consequences," explains his private representative. Field work is unthinkable for him. 

I wanted to kill the policeman. I stabbed him so hard so that I could be sure.

41-jähriger Jordanier bei seiner ersten Vernehmung

While the 41-year-old admitted in his first interrogation - "I wanted to kill the police officer. I stabbed him so hard so that I could be sure" - he denied any intention of murder in court. He had known from television that officers wear a protective vest: "As far as I know, such a vest protects against bullets and knife wounds." That was irrelevant to the intent to kill. "So much could have happened!", the public prosecutor confronts him and receives a simple "yes". 

The Jordanian, who had already spent more than four years in prison in Germany for a violent crime but had refugee status in Austria, faces up to life in prison if convicted. The jury's verdict is expected this afternoon.