15-year-old arrested in Vienna on charges of multiple rape and violence against a 14-year-old

According to investigators, the teenager is alleged to have committed the sexual offences, dangerous threats, and acts of violence over an extended period. He is charged with, among other things, multiple rape. Following the arrest, the Vienna Public Prosecutor's Office ordered his transfer to a correctional facility.

Charges and investigation findings

During questioning, the suspect did not confess. He denied the charges and stated that he had been in an intermittent relationship with the teenager. According to his account, the sexual acts had been consensual. Police themselves classified the two as standing in „in einem engen Bekanntschaftsverhältnis" (a close acquaintance relationship).

Statements of the suspect

The 14-year-old told investigators that she had been in an on-off relationship with the suspect at times. According to her statements, the offences occurred both within and outside this relationship. Indicators of an acute risk of flight were subsequently evidently deemed sufficient by the Public Prosecutor's Office to order pretrial detention.

The Vienna Police informed the public about the case on Monday, one day after the arrest. This made the matter public. The authorities simultaneously drew attention to support services for those affected.

Support services for those affected

Victims and relatives can turn to several services. The Vienna City 24-Hour Women's Emergency Hotline is available at 01-71719, the Austrian Women's Helpline at 0800-222-555 (www.frauenhelpline.at). The Women's Shelter Emergency Line can be reached at 057722, the Vienna Violence Protection Centre via https://www.gewaltschutzzentrum.at/wien/. The Austrian Violence Protection Centres also offer a nationwide hotline at 0800/700-217, and the Association of Autonomous Austrian Women's Shelters provides information at www.aoef.at. For acute emergencies, the police emergency number is 133.

Since the suspect is under 18, jurisdiction原则上 rests with the juvenile criminal justice system. Specific information regarding further judicial proceedings – such as a trial or possible precautionary measures – was initially not made public by the police and the Public Prosecutor's Office.

The case forms part of a broader debate about violence against minors and the accessibility of support services in Vienna. Counselling centres point out that reports are often only filed after a considerable delay and that the inhibition threshold for those affected is high.