Former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has been charged this Thursday with the crime of perjury by the Economic and Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (WKStA) in Vienna. Anti-corruption. The charge concerns statements made by the 36-year-old former chancellor at a commission of inquiry set up by the Austrian parliament to investigate an influence-peddling scandal by the coalition he led before resigning in 2021. The range of punishment for the offense charged is up to three years in jail.
In the commission, created in 2020, Kurz played down his role in the appointment of the head of the state holding company ÖBAG, Thomas Schmid. However, based on the chat messages, the prosecution assumes that the former head of government was heavily involved in the choice of staff.
The first investigations were unleashed as a result of the so-called “Ibiza case.” In a secretly recorded video on the island, the then leader of the FPÖ, Heinz-Christian Strache, appeared susceptible to corruption. The then coalition of the ÖVP and the FPÖ broke up over this issue.
In the search for evidence of nepotism and corruption at the time when Kurz was in government, the mobile phone of former ÖBAG boss Schmid played a central role. More than 300,000 chats – often considered incriminating by prosecutors – were a treasure trove for investigators.
Schmid offered himself as a key witness in the affair and repeatedly framed Kurz, with whom he had a close relationship.
The trial against Kurz will begin on October 18, the Regional Court spokesman announced. In addition to Kurz, his former chief of staff Bernhard Bonelli and the former CEO of Casinos Austria, Bettina Glatz-Kremsner, will sit on the bench. The file consists of several boxes, and the criminal complaint, of more than 100 pages.
Kurz has always vehemently denied the allegations. “They are false and we look forward to the moment when the truth finally comes out and those allegations are shown in court to be unfounded,” Kurz said when the scandal broke.
Kurz could also face charges in another matter involving staged polls and government advertisements in tabloid newspapers allegedly paid for with taxpayer money.
The former leader of the Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP), once a hope for conservatives across Europe, has twice led a coalition in Austria.
From 2017 to 2019, Kurz led an alliance of the ÖVP and the far-right Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ). From 2020 to 2021, he was head of government for a coalition of the ÖVP and the Greens.
Faced with the accusations, Kurz initially resigned from his posts in the fall of 2021. In December of that same year, he announced his complete departure from politics. Meanwhile, he has become a businessman and lobbyist.