15 years in prison

Speeding through Vienna: attempted murder of police officer?

This is not the first time the accused Serb has sped away from the police.

(Bild: Sophie Pratschner, Krone KREATIV)

A 34-year-old man drove away from the police halfway along Vienna's Gürtel. Now he has to face trial for attempted murder, among other things - he raced towards two officers at a roadblock. The jury convicted him of two counts of attempted murder. He is not sentenced to 15 years in prison. His relatives must then be expelled from the courtroom.

On December 8, 2023, a 35-year-old left a trail of devastation through half of Vienna. When the police tried to stop him on the Gürtel near Westbahnhof station, he simply sped away from the officers. Why? "Because I didn't have a driver's license, I was in Austria illegally, I had a joint in my hand and the car had false license plates," said the defendant on the first day of the trial in July.

Prosecutor extended the charges even further
Since then, the list of offenses he is accused of by the public prosecutor's office has become one point longer: in addition to endangering physical safety, coercion, negligent bodily harm, attempted bodily harm and attempted murder of the police officers, he now also has to answer for endangering the public. The prosecutor extended the charge on the second day of the trial by stating that he endangered at least ten people by his driving and jumping red lights.

The speeding on December 8, 2023.

(Bild: Krone Kreativ)

The sequence of events of the unbelievable speeding drive: the Serbian not only broke through a roadblock on Vienna's Gürtel and deliberately sped towards the officers, but also knocked down a cyclist and then drove into oncoming traffic - slamming into the car of a family of four. This marked the end of the "rampage", as the public prosecutor in the Vienna regional court described it.

"The helmet saved his life"
Coroner Nikolaus Klupp explains the extent of the individual incidents to the jury. He commented on the cyclist: "The helmet may have saved his life." The man, represented by Chiara-Maria Brazda (Machac law firm), "only" suffered a severe traumatic brain injury, among other things. And the mother of the family of four, who was in the car involved in the accident, was also seriously injured: Fractures of several thoracic vertebrae and a cervical vertebra as well as a torn cruciate ligament and external meniscus.

The lawyers Lukas Hruby (left) and Rudolf Mayer.

(Bild: Sophie Pratschner)

The client of Rudolf Mayer and Lukas Hruby pleads largely guilty - but he never thought that he could have killed the police officers with his vehicle. "I always expected them to jump to the side," the 35-year-old told the jury.

Sentenced in accordance with the indictment
However, the lay judges in the Vienna Landl were not convinced. After two hours of deliberation, their verdict is clear: the Serb is guilty of two counts of attempted murder of the officers. They also unanimously found him guilty of the remaining charges. With a sentence of up to life imprisonment, he faces 15 years in prison - not legally binding. 

The whole thing took less than seven minutes. Probably even less and they committed six felonies and two misdemeanors.

Die vorsitzende Richterin in der Urteilsbegründung

The injured parties are also awarded compensation for pain and suffering: the 35-year-old must pay the cyclist who was knocked down 1500 euros. The parents of the family of four, represented by lawyer Daniel Kirch, were awarded a total of 3,070 euros. 

Our client's criminal record certainly influenced the verdict.

Anwalt Rudolf Mayer nach dem Urteil

Scandal after the verdict was announced
While the defendant was already in tears during the reading of the verdict, his relatives only burst into tears at the end of the trial. His mother screams: "But that's inhumane, Judge. My son didn't do anything, he didn't kill anyone. Don't have any hearts. 15 years for nothing." The enraged woman then has to leave the courtroom. 

Not the first frenzy
The wild chase through Vienna was apparently not a first for the Serb either. In March 2019, there was a similar incident in Brno in the Czech Republic. With a kilogram of cannabis, three pistols and a Kalashnikov in his luggage, he raced through the city, outrunning the police - just like in December 2023. He was given a seven-year prison sentence for this, but was released halfway through due to good behavior and a residence ban.