The verdict of the Vienna Criminal Court was delivered Friday evening at the end of a trial which lasted four months: eight months suspended prison sentence.
Former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz was found guilty Friday of making false statements as part of a parliamentary investigation into alleged corruption in his first government. He was sentenced to eight months in prison.
The verdict from the Vienna Criminal Court was delivered after a trial that lasted four months. This is the first time in more than 30 years that a former Austrian chancellor has been put on trial.
The case centered on Mr. Kurz’s testimony as part of an investigation into the coalition he led from 2017, when his conservative Austrian People’s Party formed a coalition with the extreme Freedom Party right, until the collapse of this coalition in 2019.
Prosecutors accused the 37-year-old of providing false testimony in June 2020 regarding his role in the creation of a holding company, OeBAG, which manages the state’s role in certain companies, and the appointment of his former close confidant, Thomas Schmid, at his direction.
Judge Michael Radasztics found Mr Kurz guilty of making false statements about the appointment of the company’s supervisory board, but not about that of Mr Schmid.
Mr. Kurz stood still as Mr. Radasztics announced the verdict to a packed courtroom. The ex-chancellor is expected to appeal the verdict.
