Judgment against Jenewein: Weapons law and abuse of office in focus!

Judgment against Jenewein: Weapons law and abuse of office in focus!

On Monday, March 10, 2025, the former FPÖ National Council member Hans-Jörg Jenewein was sentenced to 12 months of conditional imprisonment in the Vienna Criminal Regional Court. The reason for the verdict are violations of the weapons law and abuse of office. However, Jenewein was acquitted on further charges, as was the ex-chief inspector of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and Combating Terrorism (BVT), Egisto Ott. Both men are the focus of a complex trial that postponed new allegations in a previous hearing, which angered the defense, both 5min.at and Die Presse report.

The charges against Jenewein are based on the fact that, in his role on the BVT investigative committee, he commissioned an employee of the former Interior Minister Herbert Kickl to provide him with confidential information about participants in European intelligence meetings. In addition, a brass knuckles was confiscated from him during a house search. Ott is accused, among other things, of passing on secret information that he received from Jenewein to unauthorized third parties, which the public prosecutor's office considers to be a serious act of abuse of office. MPs claim that Ott was persecuted for political reasons, which further increases the complexity of the case, as he has already come into focus for other secret operations that could damage Austria, such as The press reported.

Extension of proceedings and new charges

Due to new charges, the trial against Jenewein and Ott must begin again—a decision that is met with resistance from defense attorneys. Ott, who became emotional during the proceedings and “photographed back” media representatives, is facing serious allegations. The trial will continue on Monday and is intended to clarify the question of whether Jenewein and Ott interfered with official secrecy and how 5min.at makes clear. In a new type of presentation by the prosecution, the allegations were brought forward in an unprecedented double conference, with the public prosecutor emphasizing that Ott actively contributed to the “denigration of BVT”.