Murder trial in Vienna: The brutal death of 91-year-old Grete

Murder trial in Vienna: The brutal death of 91-year-old Grete

52-year-old Robert O. is currently being tried in a Viennese court for the murder of 91-year-old Grete. The tragic incident occurred on the night of September 3rd to 4th, 2024 in an allotment area. Loud Krone.at Robert O. first suffocated the old lady with a pad before he also took her life with his hands. The unfortunate woman's agony lasted around ten minutes. A terrible act committed by a man who has had several run-ins with the law in the past.

Robert O. has a long criminal history that began at the age of 20, when he brutally attacked a man and threw him into a well, where the victim drowned. He was sentenced to 13 years in prison in Vienna in 2008 for another brutal attack on women, including a 95-year-old woman. He served this sentence in Slovakia before entering Austria illegally in May 2024, only to commit a crime again a short time later.

The cruel act

The research shows that before Grete's murder, Robert O. was roaming around the allotment estate looking for a victim. He initially set his sights on a young woman but decided not to attack her. After Grete's murder, he wiped up his blood and even enjoyed a lemonade as if nothing had happened. He was finally arrested based on DNA evidence and fingerprints in Slovakia in October 2024.

He now faces a life sentence and possible placement in a forensic therapy center as a psychiatrist describes him as “very, very dangerous”. According to this assessment, he has profound personal and human deficiencies that cannot be ignored.

Crime in Austria

Robert O.'s cruel act is part of a larger problem: there are increasing crime rates in Austria. In 2023, over 528,000 crimes were reported, the highest level since 2016, with over a third of these crimes being committed in Vienna, as Statista reported. What is particularly striking is that around 43% of the suspects and those convicted are foreigners.

Crime statistics also show that drug and white-collar crime have increased significantly. There were almost 10,000 cases of drug offenses in Vienna alone in 2023. In addition, 85% of Austrians have the feeling that immigrants contribute to worsening crime problems.

A verdict in Robert O.'s case is expected in the early afternoon. The public and the media are following this trial with excitement, not least because of the particular cruelty of the crime and the highly controversial issues surrounding crime in society. Meanwhile, the question remains as to how such heinous acts can be prevented in our city in the future.