Suspect Challenges Murder Charge in 2005 Killing of Austrian Student Daniela Kammerer

The suspect, a former classmate of Kammerer, is accused of stabbing her twice in the chest and back in the early hours of June 23, 2005, in Innsbruck’s Rapoldipark. He was initially arrested in 2013 after returning from Australia but released seven weeks later when evidence proved insufficient.

Case History and New Evidence

Prosecutors revived the case earlier this month, asserting the suspect’s guilt had "wieder erhärtet" (re-solidified) based on updated DNA analysis. The cigarette, previously overlooked, now forms the core of the charges. Kapferer disputes this, noting the same evidence existed in 2013 and could have been tested then with available methods.

The suspect, who lives in Australia, has pledged to attend any trial in Innsbruck. The prosecution maintains he is the sole remaining person under "konkreter Verdacht" (concrete suspicion).

The case’s turbulent history includes a 2014 dismissal after initial evidence failed to hold. Kapferer criticized the original charges as "auf schwache Beine gestellt" (built on weak legs), a view seemingly validated by the case’s collapse.