Buwog trial: Grasser found guilty

Former Finance Minister Karl-Heinz Grasser and former lobbyists Walter Meischberger and Peter Hochegger were found guilty of infidelity in the context of the Buwog trial. Similarly, the former head of Telekom Fischer, the former head of Immofinanz Petrikovics and other defendants.

AUSTRIA. This is the end of the largest corruption process in the history of the Second Republic. Grasser had abused his political function, violated financial interests and failed to fulfill his obligations, Judge Marion Hohenecker said in the verdict in the grand jury court of the Vienna criminal court. Like Meischberger, Grasser took the trial in stride, according to media reports. The judgments are not final. Due to the size of the trial, the verdict is likely to take several hours.

What was the process about? According to the prosecution’s indictment for corruption and economic affairs, the former Finance Minister is said to have committed infidelity and was bribed in two governments by former Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel (ÖVP) during the privatization of federal apartments in 2004. He is also said to have received a bribe when the tax authorities leased the Terminal Tower office building in Linz in 2006. Buwog’s privatization entails a commission of 9.6 million euros, while the Linz office building is said to have flowed through 200,000 euros. According to the indictment, the money is said to have been divided between Grasser and his co-defendants.

The process takes three years

Grasser’s trial began on December 12, 2017 in the great jury court room of the Vienna Criminal Court with great media interest, which, however, was less and less throughout the long process. Due to the crown, there was a longer hiatus in the process in the spring of 2020. Originally, the verdict was supposed to be announced before the summer, but the virus thwarted this schedule. After closing, the courtroom was fitted with Plexiglas walls between the defendants.