Last summer, a parcel deliverer was stabbed out of nowhere in Vienna. The victim claims to have recognized the perpetrator moments later when leaving a supermarket. Police have released an image captured by store surveillance cameras of the man charged. But during the trial it becomes clear that something went wrong during the investigative work.
Imagine buying a drink at the supermarket for your stepdaughter on the way to school. A little later your photo from the store appears in the media. The Vienna police are looking for you for a serious crime. They present themselves. The procedure means you will lose your job and girlfriend and you risk a prison sentence of up to ten years.
Delivery man collapsed in front of the supermarket covered in blood
This is what happened to a born Serb in Vienna. “I didn’t do anything,” he tearfully claimed during the trial. The Vienna public prosecutor’s office sees it differently: on June 26, 2023, the suspect allegedly attacked a parcel deliverer in Wagramer Strasse with a knife out of the blue and seriously injured him.
“I was on my way to a customer and put my bag down. Then the man came and said, ‘Why are you throwing the packages on the ground with full force?'” The 28-year-old victim remembers the brief conversation before he was attacked. The delivery man dragged himself a few blocks away and was covered in blood. collapsed in front of a supermarket. During the emergency room, the seriously injured delivery person shouted: “That’s him!”, meaning a man who leisurely walked out of the store – the one who has now been charged.
Police officer speaks of a chaotic crime scene
And this despite the fact that the features – neither clothing nor appearance – did not quite match and the research work was clearly marked by errors. A description of the perpetrator would only have been obtained from the victim after he had been shown the photos (and apparently only those of the Serb). A police officer, testifying in the trial, said the work on the scene was not very professional: “There were neither fingerprints nor DNA recorded on the evidence. It was a chaotic crime scene.”
No bloodstains, wrong shoe color
The fact that a man who had just stabbed someone calmly bought a soft drink after the crime should not have come as a surprise to either the researchers or the StA. The photos show no traces of blood, even though it literally spurted from the stab wound in the thigh. The color of the shoes also did not match the description of the perpetrator.
Judge Hannelore Bahr pronounces a flat acquittal, which is not legally binding: “You were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time,” she says.
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.
