Cash injection for mother

Long prison sentence for drug smuggler

The 26-year-old will now spend several years behind "Swedish curtains".

(Bild: Chantal Dorn, Krone KREATIV)

As a member of a drug ring, a 26-year-old man from Vorarlberg was sentenced to six and a half years in prison at Feldkirch Regional Court on Friday. He apologized during the trial: Because his father had fallen ill, he had tried to support his mother financially.

"My client was just a stooge in this case," Matthias Holzmann, the defendant's legal counsel, pointed out during the trial. Thanks to his comprehensive confession, the 26-year-old had not only contributed to establishing the truth, but also significantly to shortening the proceedings. Which is why the defense lawyer pleaded for a lenient sentence.

The previously innocent man is accused of being involved in the sale of 37 kilograms of cocaine and 28 kilograms of marijuana as a member of a Vorarlberg drug ring between 2020 and 2024. However, according to the chat logs of the crypto cell phones used, which were evaluated by the investigators, the accused was merely a small number within the organization. He smuggled the drugs from Switzerland to Vorarlberg in specially prepared cars. There he passed them on to other dealers or sold the drugs himself. He used his own apartment as a drug bunker, where he packed both cocaine and marijuana.

Lawyer Matthias Holzmann represented the accused.

(Bild: Chantal Dorn)

Defendant asks for an apology
During the trial, the accused did not want to make any more statements, instead he read out a statement he had written while in custody. In it, he apologized for the harm he had done to others through his actions. "I was addicted to drugs and gambling at the time." To make matters worse, his father had also fallen ill, so he had tried to support his mother financially by providing the henchman services.

In the end, the presiding judge of the panel of lay judges, Lisa Pfeifer, acknowledged the 26-year-old's remorseful confession and integrity, but nevertheless sentenced him to six and a half years in prison. She declared the amount of 12,800 euros forfeited. The verdict is not yet final.