78-Year-Old Woman Found Dead in Vienna Apartment Under Suspicious Circumstances

The case is being treated as a "bedenklichen Todesfall" – a suspicious death – a classification the Landespolizeidirektion publicly confirmed on Monday.

Because of the unclear circumstances, the Landeskriminalamt (State Criminal Police Office) has assumed control of the investigation.

A preliminary autopsy has been conducted. According to the first findings, a homicide cannot be ruled out. "Nach dem vorliegenden ersten Obduktionsbefund kann man nicht zu hundertprozentiger Sicherheit sagen, ob ein Tötungsdelikt vorliegt," Steirer explained.

Autopsy Findings

For criminal-tactical reasons, police have not released details about how the body was found or other specific circumstances at the scene.

Evidence secured at the apartment is now being forensically evaluated. Simultaneously, officers are interviewing people from the woman's social environment to piece together her final days.

Next Steps

The Vienna public prosecutor's office will decide whether additional medical or forensic examinations are necessary to determine the exact cause and manner of death.