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The former defense minister continues to call for “complete clarification and redress for taxpayers.”
Vienna / Toulouse. Burgenland Governor Hans Peter Doskozil (SPÖ) calls the completion of the fraud report against Airbus in the Eurofighter case, which became known on Monday, a “real scandal.” It is a “blow to the face of Austrian taxpayers” that the Austrian judiciary apparently has no interest in investigating founded allegations of fraud against Airbus.
Doskozil had filed the complaint during his time as Minister of Defense. “Only recently has Airbus admitted unfair behavior and political contributions to the United States judiciary regarding the Eurofighter deal in Austria,” the former department head said in a press release. In several countries, especially in the United States with around 55 million euros and in Germany with almost 90 million euros, Airbus was ordered to pay fines directly related to the Austrian cause.
“Once again, we are surprised that the process in the shadow of the coronavirus crisis is supposed to be ‘registered’ in Austria,” said the governor.
As Minister of Defense, Doskozil filed a complaint against Airbus in 2017 for serious fraud and, at the same time, also activated US authorities. The working group at the Ministry of Defense had prepared the report within the department and had taken the additional steps only in coordination with the finance attorney. “Even then, it was clear that the political leadership of the judiciary and the coalition partner at that time would face great headwinds. Unfortunately, this mistrust has so far been fully confirmed at all stages of this discussion,” Doskozil said .
The Governor emphasized that he continued to maintain his demand for complete information and redress for taxpayers. The new federal government, especially Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner (ÖVP), is now challenged.
“It goes without saying that the chief financial officer, Wolfgang Peschorn, was commissioned by Tanner to examine more legal measures. I am fully confident that the judiciary will have a different outcome if it lets them work without political pressure.” Doskozil said. “I also ask the Minister of Defense not only to examine all legal options, but to specifically request the continuation of the investigation.”
Fraud report failed, WKStA continues to investigate
The fraud proceedings now closed against Eurofighter / Airbus are based on a 2017 Ministry of Defense announcement under the then Minister SPÖ Hans Peter Doskozil. The main part of the Eurofighter case, which has meanwhile been turned over to the Office of the Economic and Corruption Prosecutor (WKStA), is still open, among other things, due to bribery and infidelity.
In Doskzil’s complaint, the accusation was fraudulent and fraudulent in purchasing the planes. The Republic of Austria joined the criminal proceedings as a private party and claimed compensation of € 183.4 million. The presentation of the facts was based on investigations carried out by the “Task Force Eurofighter” established in the Ministry of Defense in late 2012.
Doskozil, now the governor of Burgenland, addressed the distrust notice in the then judicial department run by ÖVP, as he himself explained in February. At that time, another aspect of the procedure against Eurofighter had proved successful: after an announcement in the US. In the US, Airbus had to admit unfair behavior when buying Eurofighter in Austria, but continued to reject the bribery allegations. Since then, the Federal Government, headed by Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner (ÖVP), has been making increasing efforts to make peace.
In the Vienna fraud report, it was assumed that Airbus had misled the republic of the true purchase price, as well as the interceptors’ ability to deliver and equip “with fraudulent intent.” Specifically, there were two aspects, namely, the meter’s transaction costs valued at the purchase price, on the one hand, and the supposedly inadequate delivery of the actually ordered Tranche 2 fighter jets on the other. Doskozil attributed the damage to the republic through the purchase of the Eurofighter up to 1,100 million euros.
Now that the fraud aspect has ceased, the Eurofighter case has not been shelved, even if the prosecution’s investigations have dragged on for many years. In early 2019, the case migrated from the Vienna Prosecutor’s Office to the WKStA, which, as of February 2020, identified some 60 known suspects. Instead of a single person as in the Vienna State Security Office, the WKStA appoints four prosecutors and a group leader and also dealt with the head of the Justice Section, Christian Pilnacek, who recommended “hitting” secondary aspects of the procedures.
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