Graz man (30) sentenced

Fatal kick: “Josef was such a nice person!”

The defendant maintained his responsibility that he did not want to kill the 54-year-old.

(Bild: Eva Stockner/Steirerkrone)

A 30-year-old ex-footballer ended the life of a Styrian man with a single kick to the stomach. Until the very end, the defendant claimed that he did not want to kill the 54-year-old. On Monday evening, the jury decided: not murder, but intentional grievous bodily harm resulting in death - eight years in prison; not legally binding.

On January 27, the man from Graz kicked the 54-year-old man so hard in the stomach outside a restaurant in Graz-Gries that he died as a result of a so-called fat embolism. He had previously injured another man in the café with a headbutt. 

The victim of the "headbutt", who was represented by lawyer Christoph Scala, testified in court on Monday. "We were throwing dice at the bar. I then saw out of the corner of my eye how the door of the bar opened and someone came towards me. Then I just felt a burner in my face." When he regained consciousness lying on the floor, "the others were just trying to revive Josef." 

"There were two bar stools between us"
He did not know the accused and there had been no scuffle, nothing at all. Presiding judge Julia Riffel was interested in what he had to do with the defendant's wife - probably in relation to the footballer's jealousy. He is said to be quick-tempered and aggressive. "She only asked me about my ex-girlfriend. Nothing more. And there were two bar stools between us," shrugs the Styrian.

Josef was a really nice person. He would never have hurt anyone. He was the last person who would have argued with anyone.

Der Freund des Opfers

"Josef was your friend. What kind of person was he?" prosecutor Hansjörg Bacher wants to know from the witness. "Josef was a very nice person. He would never have done anything to anyone. He was the last person who would have argued with anyone." But he obviously wanted to stand up for his friend, whom the accused had injured.

"Forcefully kicked in the stomach area"
The next witness to appear before the jury was the one who witnessed the fatal attack from the window of his third-floor apartment after hearing loud screams. "I saw a man kneeling on the floor on all fours. And another who walked away, but then turned around and kicked the other man hard in the stomach." Judge Julia Riffel: "Like in soccer?" - "Yes, exactly! It made a thudding noise."

When asked by a juror where the defendant had kicked the victim, the witness answered firmly: "On the right". To which defense attorney Bernhard Lehofer replied: "But all the injuries were on the left side. That's really strange. How do you explain that?" - "Maybe the injuries were in the middle? But he certainly kicked on the right side." - "But that can't be true," says the lawyer.

"Didn't see a kick"
The defendant's mother-in-law, who claims to have noticed neither the "headbutt" nor the fatal kick, then talks her head off. Even though she was standing not even a meter away. "Did you close your eyes or look away?" asked the chairwoman, visibly annoyed. "I didn't see a kick", the 54-year-old insisted. But the victim was very aggressive ... "You should really think carefully about what you say," the judge emphasized with regard to false testimony.

The verdict was reached on Monday evening. The jury decided on intentional grievous bodily harm resulting in death (sentence of up to 15 years in prison) and attempted grievous bodily harm for the "Headbutt", but not murder. Eight years imprisonment; not legally binding.