Austrian Court Convicts Man Whose Girlfriend Died As They Climbed The Country's Highest Mountain

VIENNA — An Austrian tribunal has convicted a man of manslaughter caused by gross negligence aft his woman froze to decease arsenic nan mates attempted to climb nan country’s highest highest past year.

The 37-year-old suspect was fixed a five-month suspended condemnation and a $11,300 good successful a verdict handed down by nan Innsbruck authorities tribunal Thursday nighttime aft a one-day trial, nan Austria Press Agency reported. The tribunal did not place him, successful keeping pinch section privateness rules.

The man and his 33-year-old woman group retired to climb nan Grossglockner successful occidental Austria successful January 2025. Prosecutors said that she died about164 feet beneath nan 12,460-foot highest aft he near her behind. The suspect pleaded not blameworthy to nan charges.

Judge Norbert Hofer said that nan suspect had misjudged nan business connected nan upland but had not wilfully near down his woman — whose knowledge of mountaineering, he said, was “galaxies” short of nan man’s own. The condemnation was good short of nan maximum 3 years successful prison.

“I don’t spot you arsenic a murderer, I don’t spot you arsenic a cold-hearted man,” he said, alluding to societal media posts astir nan case. “I spot you arsenic nan 1 who yet tried to telephone thief and guidelines by his girlfriend.”

However, nan judge said that nan suspect had grounded to return his “leadership responsibility.” He said nan female would almost surely person survived “if nan due measures had been taken,” for illustration making an emergency telephone earlier aliases turning back.

The suspect told nan tribunal he was “endlessly sorry,” APA reported. He said that nan mates had made each their decisions together and planned their climbs together, including nan Grossglockner climb.

He based on that he himself had nary general Alpine training and that his girlfriend’s knowledge wasn’t acold short of his own. He said she had been successful bully information erstwhile a constabulary chopper flew complete nan mates earlier successful nan climb and he couldn’t explicate her accelerated deterioration. He said he had descended to activity thief aft consulting pinch her.

The verdict tin beryllium appealed.