A woman from Lower Austria with a criminal record was convicted of serious commercial fraud on Thursday at the Feldkirch regional court. Among other things, she had shamelessly exploited a defenseless woman.
The 48-year-old disabled pensioner’s “criminal career” began in 2016 when she ordered electrical appliances from various dealers in Dornbirn but did not pay. Reminders and letters from lawyers had no effect. Until the debt collection agency finally stood up and wanted more than 12,000 euros. In 2021, the defendant, who was now in private bankruptcy, tricked a widow into believing that she was supporting her in dealings with the authorities, including with regard to the widow’s pension. However, the criminal paid well for this “help” by repeatedly giving the overwhelmed woman new, flimsy reasons for the cost of applications, etc. And so the brazen fraudster managed to steal 50,000 euros from the victim within five months. The unscrupulous person used the money to finance her gambling addiction. “Reprehensible, cold-blooded” act In the jury trial on Thursday, the defendant was pious: “I have never cheated anyone,” she said. Prosecutor Philipp Höfle saw it differently: “The defendant suffers from a gambling addiction. You’re going over and over again.” The widow’s private stakeholder representative, Serbil Dogan, also had similar words. She spoke of a “reprehensible and cold-blooded” act. After a short consultation, the presiding judge of the jury senate found the defendant guilty as charged: nine months of conditional imprisonment and a fine of 2,160 euros, as well as an instruction to undergo psychotherapy. She awarded the victim 40,000 euros. Whether she will ever get the money is unclear due to the fraudster’s lack of resources.
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