18 months partly conditional
Abuse in the outdoor pool: the accused were police officers
The accused - aged 29 and 30 - covered their faces with folders when they were brought before the Wiener Neustadt Regional Court (Lower Austria) at 9 a.m. on Thursday. At the "Aqua Splash" outdoor pool in Traiskirchen in June, they allegedly groped the private parts of a total of six young bathers aged between nine and 13 in the underwater whirlpool. They were each sentenced to 18 months in prison, six of them unconditional - not legally binding.
"I have two children aged six and eight," said the first accused Afghan, who also surprised the court with his former profession: "I was a policeman," he stated. Like the second defendant, he pleaded "guilty" to the shocking allegations of the crime on June 18, 2024 in the "Aqua Splash" outdoor pool in Traiskirchen (Lower Austria). He had been drunk that day for the first time in his life. "I swear that I didn't do it on purpose. I know I made a mistake. I have children of my own and I regret it very much." He could no longer remember the incident at all because he was so drunk.
The accused motivated each other
The duo allegedly ambushed children swimming in the current channel on that summer day. According to the report, they submerged in the whirlpool and deliberately grabbed their victims underwater and tried to touch them in their private parts - which they partly succeeded in doing. The public prosecutor specified: "They grabbed the vagina, pinched the penis of one victim and intensively groped the vagina and breasts of another." The children's buttocks were also the target of several attacks. According to the public prosecutor, the two asylum seekers are said to have motivated each other to commit the acts.
1.1 per mille alcohol in the blood
"My client is still afraid to go out alone," reported a victim's representative in the trial for multiple sexual abuse of minors. A witness also reported that at the time of the crime, apart from the two defendants, only children were allegedly present in the spa. The defendants had held their noses with one hand while going underwater and had "groped some children" with the other. A small child was also "pulled down".
According to the judge, the 30-year-old first defendant had 1.1 per mille alcohol in his blood when he was arrested. "That's enough for disinhibition. But that's a far cry from no longer knowing what you're doing," said Mr. Rat, criticizing the man for trying to blame everything on the alcohol.
Only moved into the camp shortly before the crime
"I was worried about my daughter. She can't speak well, has problems with her vocal chords", the "policeman" then claimed. The child, who lives with her grandmother, was about to have an operation. "I was scared, so I was prescribed tablets in the camp," said the widower, who had lost his wife to cancer. The 30-year-old had only arrived at the refugee camp in Traiskirchen a few days before the attacks. A witness could not recognize any sadness in the men: "They laughed together."
Second defendant is a non-swimmer
The second defendant also testified that he could no longer remember the "bathing day" due to alcoholization. They had consumed a bottle of vodka. The judge did not accept this: "You say you remember going to the baths. And then you only remember that you were arrested. That contradicts your previous statements." But the 29-year-old stuck to his guns and added: "I would like to apologize. A normal person doesn't do things like that." He is a non-swimmer. This was another reason why it was "absolutely not wise to go into the whirlpool". Victims' lawyer Florian Höllwarth in his closing statement: "The children's statements were clear."
Victims receive 500 and 1000 euros compensation for pain and suffering
At 1.30 p.m., the jury's verdict was final: the two men were each sentenced to 18 months in prison, six of which were unconditional. As they had been in custody since June, the two asylum seekers will be free again in a few weeks. They can apply for release in around two weeks. By then, two thirds of the unconditional sentence will have been served. The young victims will be awarded between 500 and 1000 euros in compensation. The defendants had only acknowledged 100 euros per child during the trial. Not legally binding.
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