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The Eisenstadt prosecutor’s office investigated Manfred Kölly, Mayor of Deutschkreutz LBL, for three years. The indictment is not yet final because Kölly’s attorney can still file an objection.
In the local elections of October 2017, the state electoral authority found “illegality” (with dozens of ballots, it is very likely that the crosses came from the same person), while the Eisenstadt prosecutor’s office launched investigations against Kölly on suspicion of abuse of power.
About 180 witness interviews had to be conducted, which partly explains the length of the process. Meanwhile, a re-election ordered by the state electoral authority has already taken place in Deutschkreutz: Kölly won the absolute again in autumn 2018.
“Most of the time,” says Kölly
As Kölly was a member of the state parliament until the January elections, the Vienna Public Prosecutor’s Office (OStA) and the Ministry of Justice also had to participate. The higher authorities ordered the partial cessation of the process because the allegations could not be substantiated with some ballots, but with others, and here the charge of abuse of office § 302 StGB and attempted incitement to present false evidence was confirmed.
In KURIER’s conversation, the 66-year-old Kölly, who has been mayor of Deutschkreutz since 2002, is still calm. “A large part of the accusations” have been discontinued, says the local chief (the regional court did not want to comment on the number of cases), but if he will make an objection to the accusation, he cannot answer conclusively “but I heard that once in “.
You are confident that you will be able to rebut the accused at a hearing. “There will be nothing left,” said Kölly. In any case, the whole thing has no impact on your mayor’s office. “What kind of effects should there be?” Asks Kölly.
One possible effect: municipal and state politicians lose their positions if they are legally sentenced to an unconditional prison of more than six months or a conditional one of more than a year.
Deputy Mayor Andreas Kacsits, whose Deutschkreutz ÖVP kicked the ball against Kölly in 2017, is awaiting the court’s verdict, because: “Asking Kölly to resign does not make sense.”
