The first trial against the once flamboyant Signa founder ended with a guilty verdict. The court sentenced Benko to 24 months in prison. However, he was acquitted on a second count. The verdict is not final.

At the end, all eyes turned once again to the man in the dark suit on the left bench by the wall. René Benko, 48 years old and a former billionaire, remained there, shielded by his lawyers and broad-shouldered prison guards. His reluctance to sit in the center of the courtroom in the actual prosecutor's chair was also evident when the judge announced the verdict at the Innsbruck Regional Court shortly before 2 p.m., earlier than expected: Signa founder and former real estate tycoon Benko was guilty of fraudulent piracy and was sentenced to two years' unconditional imprisonment – not yet final.

Benko's defense attorney, Norbert Wess, viewed the verdict with mixed feelings, as he stated shortly after the trial. The jury found Benko's guilt proven on only one of the two charges. The court acquitted him of the accusation by the Economic and Corruption Prosecutor's Office that he had"laid aside" money by paying rent and operating costs for a villa in the Innsbruck district of Hungerburg, but never lived there. According to the prosecution, the luxury villa had been uninhabitable due to a landslide. However, the judge found this unproven, despite questioning six witnesses.

This reduced the amount of damages from €660,000 to €300,000 – consequently, the potential penalty would be significantly lower. Wess is nevertheless considering appealing the verdict. Representatives of the public prosecutor's office have also not yet made a statement. If the first-instance verdict stands, René Benko will remain in prison for approximately fourteen more months. The time he spent in pre-trial detention will be credited to his time.

Proceedings as a prelude to a possible series of trials

How the Tyrolean himself felt about it was difficult to discern from his reaction to the verdict. In the courtroom, he sat rigidly at the end, staring forward at the table in front of him, then back at the packed courtroom. Benko is a"fighter," his lawyer said after the hearing."He handles every situation."

The court finds it proven that the former real estate investor wanted to protect his money from creditors by transferring €300,000 to his mother's foundation shortly before the Signa bankruptcies began two years ago—"without any legal basis." Judge Andrea Wegscheider stated: "That's enough for the bankruptcy. Everything else is irrelevant for these proceedings." She also clarified that the entrepreneur acted intentionally."Mr. Benko attempted to use money under a different umbrella during the insolvency proceedings." Attempts were made to conceal payments.

The proceedings are considered the first in a potential series of trials surrounding the largest bankruptcy in Austria's recent history. The creditors' claims total €27.6 billion. The €300,000 donation now being dealt with in the first trial may seem like"pocket money," but it is nevertheless a lot of money, the judge said."The average citizen must be allowed to believe that something like this doesn't happen." In light of the complex nature of the proceedings, Benko's defense attorney, Wess, is proposing a new approach for the further investigation."The public prosecutor's office must be given more time." He speaks of "one or two years" so that a course of action can then be considered together with those affected.

This is how the second day of the trial went

The second day of the trial began on Wednesday morning just like the previous one: René Benko was once again barely visible as he entered the courtroom shortly after nine. Once again, he was accompanied by prison guards in bulletproof vests. Benko has been in pretrial detention since January, and it was obvious: dark circles under his eyes, pale.

After that, things moved quickly in the jury room at the Innsbruck Regional Court. One witness after another took their seats before the panel of lay judges. The first Signa trial involved water damage in the Benkos' house, a landslide, a rental agreement, and, of course, money transfers.

Almost all of the witnesses came from Benko's circle and Signa Holding: a former manager of the company, former managing director Markus Mühlberger, and a former controller were summoned. The latter and the former manager are under investigation. The former controller is suspected of perjury in another case related to the Signa complex, and according to the judge, the former manager is himself a defendant"in a major criminal case in Vienna." Both were asked to answer a simple question: Was the Hungerburg in Innsbruck habitable in 2023 or not?

Luxury villa in focus: Was it habitable or not?

Yes, said the former manager. Even though he himself had never been there during that period. But why did he assume that? Benko himself had approached him and informed him that he wanted to live in the villa with his wife, he told the court. The defendant had written the draft contract. There were no other interested parties in the house."It's not your run-of-the-mill property." Benko himself listened intently to his former employee's words, occasionally placing his index finger to his upper lip and gazing intently at the screen in front of him, where the judge was showing contracts for the renovation and refurbishment costs of the house.

In the end, the judge concluded that even after the conclusion of the evidentiary proceedings, it could not be conclusively proven whether the villa was habitable or not. In her verdict, she stated:"Anything we cannot establish goes in favor of the defendant."