After the fatal shots at the office in Trieben (Styria), the shooter will be tried in Leoben on Tuesday. “Will he finally break his silence?” – this is one of the questions people in the city ask.
On February 27, 2023, the quiet town of Trieben was in shock. Around 7:45 a.m., four shots were fired at the police station. Three of these hit the then post commander (59) and father of three children. Each one was fatal.
There was a risk of accusations of abuse of office
Why did it have to come to this? The deceased man previously threatened the shooter with a report and disciplinary proceedings for abuse of office because he had recorded an industrial accident, but had not registered and forwarded it. The now accused left the room for a few minutes and returned with terrible intentions. He asked his superior if the matter could not be arranged differently. When he said no, he pulled out his Glock 17 and fired four times. “Arrest me, I shot the boss,” he immediately confronted a colleague. Another officer heard the shots and raised the alarm.
The 47-year-old has confessed to the fatal shots. But he is adamantly silent about the motive for the crime. His lawyer also declined to comment at Krone’s request.
Does the suspect now break his silence?
He will be tried in Leoben next Tuesday. “Will he break his silence before the jury?” Many people are asking themselves this question right now. What happened is also coming to the fore again in Trieben because of the approaching trial. “Everyone is talking about it again, everything is boiling again,” confirms Mayor Helmut Schöttl (SPÖ).
Gerhard Kals, who has been the new commander of the heavily tested office and its employees since the autumn, also confirms this: “What happened is coming back to life. The team is confronted with it, we talk a lot. We handle it well.”
Will more normality return with the trial, which is expected to end with a verdict on this day? That too is probably a matter of time. Wounds heal, but scars remain.
“It was only a matter of time”
The alleged murderer was ‘known for bad money’ in the Paltental, they say. The Triebners knew him, but preferred not to ‘seize’ him. “He was considered manic-depressive, at one point he was elated and then again he was terrified,” said a former colleague after the terrible bloody act of the “Krone”.
He had behavioral problems and said several times that he was not satisfied with his life. When the police officer once threatened to commit suicide, alarm bells went off among his colleagues: “Because he was carrying a weapon, we reported it several times.” But the police doctor never took action.
“Ticking time bomb”
“Non-compliance with official duties” was also reported several times to superiors in Graz, and complaints continued to be received about “official actions that got out of hand”. Shortly after the bloody act in Trieben there was talk of a ‘ticking time bomb’; it was only a matter of time before ‘something happened’: ‘The police officer shouted at people and hit a driver.’ And that was reported. ‘ also tells about the 46-year-old’s difficult childhood: he was beaten and threatened with murder by his father, a hunter and gun madman. The father was repeatedly turned away from the family.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
