Trial in Salzburg: 70-Year-Old Faces Court for Attempted Murder of Ex-Wife

Account of the Ex-Wife

The ex-wife described in the trial that the accused had stood in front of her with the knife. "Er sagte, er will aus dem Leben scheiden, und vorher bringt er mich um, weil ich seinen Sohn weggenommen habe." For her, it had been clear that she could no longer do anything now. She had called the son, at which point he said, "ich will dich mitnehmen". "Es war klar für mich, dass er mich umbringen will." Everything had happened so quickly. The woman was operated on in the hospital after the knife wounds and has been in psychotherapy ever since.

The accused himself described that he had not wanted to live like this any longer and had wanted to commit suicide, and had inflicted a wound on himself with the knife on his arm. "Ich war verzweifelt mit meiner Lebenssituation gewesen," the accused said. He spoke of a trauma and "die nicht schönen Erinnerungen" to the relationship with his ex-wife. Because he did not want to die "nicht ungesehen", he had gone to his ex-wife's apartment.

On the Motive for the Crime

The prosecutor explained regarding the motive: "Er war unzufrieden mit seiner tristen Situation und auch mit ihrem Verhalten". According to the indictment, the accused had needed a registered address shortly before Christmas 2025 because he had been homeless and without means, and had asked his ex-wife if he could live in the house. He had agreed to being provided with an emergency bed in the son's apartment, "aber nur für die Zeit, bis er etwas findet."

The ex-wife had moved into the house together with her son in 2013, and the accused had also moved in at that time to carry out renovation work. The planned three months had, however, turned into "mehrere Jahre". In 2022, the man had moved out at the ex-wife's request. In January, the accused had told his son that he was at the end of his rope because the ex-wife had asked him to pay a monthly contribution of 200 euros for living there. The suggestion to pay 200 euros had not come from her, the witness stated.

Defense and Statements in the Trial

The prosecutor emphasized that the accused had wanted to kill his ex-wife. "Er wollte sicher nicht, dass die Frau stirbt," the defense attorney countered. He explained that the stab wounds had been inflicted with low intensity, and when the woman ran away, the accused had not chased her. "Es war kein festes Stechen". When asked by the judge about his announcement at the time, the accused replied, "das habe ich gesagt, um ihr Angst zu machen". There had been no argument, the ex-wife said with regard to the incident: "Ich bin froh, dass ich davongekommen bin."

Support Services in Austria

Support services for women experiencing violence are available in Austria at, among others, the Women's Helpline (frauenhelpline.at, 0800-222-555), the Association of Autonomous Austrian Women's Shelters (aoef.at), the Women's Shelter Emergency Hotline (057722), the Austrian Violence Protection Centers (0800/700-217), and the Police Emergency Hotline (133). For persons with suicidal thoughts and their relatives, the Suicide Prevention Portal of the Ministry of Health offers information and contact points.

The trial at the Regional Court of Salzburg deals with an incident from January 2026. A verdict was not yet known at the time of reporting. The proceedings shed light on the issue of violence against women in the family environment, which is discussed in Austria under the term femicide, and on the particular risk situation that can arise when ex-partners turn to former partners in precarious life situations.