On appeal – lawyers for Karmasin will appeal conviction

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Three days ago, former Minister of Family Affairs Sophie Karmasin was sentenced to 15 months in prison for anti-competitive practices. The 56-year-old was acquitted of the charge of fraud. On Friday, her lawyers announced that they will appeal the sentencing verdict.

While the WKStA filed a nullity suit against the acquittal of fraud allegations related to continued payment of wages, Karmasin’s lawyers, Norbert Wess and Philipp Wolm, have now also decided to appeal. Three days ago, former ÖVP Minister of Family Affairs, Sophie Karmasin, was sentenced to 15 months in prison for non-binding decisions on anti-competitive agreements.

Acquittal assistance
Dr. Karmasin notes with some relief the acquittal of the fraud charge. Ultimately, the Court of First Instance fully shared its position on this. The amount to be repaid was set by the court at around EUR 40,000, so Ms. Dr. Karmasin even transferred more than EUR 30,000 too much to the Republic of Austria,” defender Norbert Wess introduces in his statement.

Wess: “There was no competition at all”
“To date, there has been no Supreme Court ruling in Austria on the allegation of anti-competitive agreements that could be used to interpret the law. We take the legal position that there can be no violation of rights in the specific case, as the Ministry of Sports did not organize a competition that subsequentlyzt could become. Against this background, the sentencing verdict is therefore contested,” he continues.

Some observers of the trial were also surprised by the verdict. They had expected a conviction on the payment rather than on the second offence. However, Karmasin was heavily charged with regard to the investigations, both by Sports Ministry officials and Casag chief witness Sabine Beinschab.

Source: Krone

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