Vienna: Former Austrian Chancellor Heinz Strache Christian conducted a trial on Tuesday on charges of grafts related to the giant “Ibiza-gate” scandal, which still rocked national politics two years after it broke.
The scandal can be traced back to the meeting in 2017 on the Spanish resort island of Ibiza between Strache, the leader of the Fari Freedom Party (FPOE), and a woman who posed as a nephew of a Russian oligarchy.
Strache is being filmed promising a female country contract in return to help its party to campaign for general elections on anti-migration planks, anti-Islam.
Strache also discusses the possibility of women who buy the most Austrian tabloid, Kronen Zeitung, and make the editorial line more pro-FPOE.
He did not know the meeting was stinging and he was being filmed.
The video appeared in German media in May 2019 and caused the collapse of the coalition government consisting of FPOE and the Middle People’s Party (OEVP) Sebastian Kurz Chancellor.
Strache is claimed in the video that several high profile billionaires, as well as Novatic International Gambling Companies, have funded political parties through illegal contributions to the association.
All mentioned by Strache denied errors.
Strache associated what he said in the video to poisoning and claimed he might be sedated.
So far only Julian Hessenthaler, a private detective that helps organize videos, has been arrested, based on drug-related violations where he faces 15 years in prison.
However, the judicial investigation launched after the video was released caused Strache’s cellphone foreclosure and several other politicians, which opened the way for no less than 12 separate probes into allegations of errors.
The experiment began Tuesday to revolve around the allegations offered by Straci to change the law to help FPOE donor friends from his safe public funding for his personal hospital.
One investigation focused on alleged relations between novastic and senior political numbers.
The highest target is Finance Minister Oevp Gernot Bluemel, a close belief, and allied Kurz.
Payment is needed by Novatic to OEVP in return for “assistance with tax liabilities faced by business abroad”, according to prosecutors.
Bluemel pulled the ridicule when the investigators raided his house in February, right when his partner took out a laptop to take a walk with the couple’s baby.
Bluemel and Novomatic deny any mistakes.
Kurz and Bluemel are both regarding the main headline for allegedly helping civil servants Thomas Schmid won a favorable post as Head of Oebag, a company that manages Austrian state ownership in various companies.
In a leaked chat message refers to the Oebag setting process, Kurz wrote to Schmid, “You get everything you want,” Add some emojis “kiss”, which Schmid answered: “I am very happy, I like my Chancellor.” The researchers have also found conversations that show that Schmid helps write specifications for the work applied.
Kurz is now being investigated to make a false statement to the Parliamentary Committee for infidelity, a violation that can bring a three-year prison sentence.
The Greens, Kurz coalition partner, has not taken the position whether accused will make his position as chancellor cannot be maintained.
Two years, Fallout Mounts from ‘Ibiza-gate’ Austria
