After arrest: WKStA submitted an application for pre-trial detention for Benko

A detention and legal protection judge – in this case at the Vienna Regional Court – must now decide on the pre-trial detention application within 48 hours. The pre-trial detention application was sent to the Vienna Regional Court for Criminal Matters “because we are responsible for all WKStA investigations,” court spokeswoman Christina Salzborn told the APA on Thursday.

The detention hearing is likely to take place via video conference, as Benko is currently in Innsbruck. Experts believe it is unlikely that Benko will be taken from Innsbruck to Vienna immediately. The authorities further announced that Benko was ordered to be sent to the prison in Innsbruck.

Currently no deposit option

The judiciary does not currently accept the risk of escape as a reason for detention. This is important because bail is only possible if there is a risk of absconding, but not if there is a risk of committing a crime or concealing the crime.

If the current reasons for detention remain, Benko would have no prospect of avoiding possible imprisonment in exchange for more lenient means by depositing a sum of money. In principle, pre-trial detention is initially imposed for a period of 14 days.

The allegations of the WKStA

According to the WKStA broadcast, Benko is said to have falsified an invoice and attempted to hide assets and evade access from authorities, liquidators and creditors. The arrest was carried out on the orders of the WKStA by the SoKo Signa of the Federal Criminal Police Office after approval from the Vienna Regional Court.

Intensive investigations

Regarding the risk of committing an offense, the WKStA also wrote in its broadcast that “in particular, Benko is said to be, among other things, the de facto ruler and beneficial owner of the Laura Private Foundation and to have concealed this as part of his personal insolvency.” In doing so, he concealed assets and continued to remove the assets in the foundation from the access of authorities, trustees and creditors.

For the public prosecutor’s office, this emerges from the results of the intensive investigations of the past few months, in particular telephone surveillance, an evaluation of the accused’s message traffic and the statements of business partners, management and employees that were questioned by the economic and corruption public prosecutor’s office, according to the WKStA.

Multiple procedural strands

Regarding the risk of obscurity, it was said that the accused was also said to have subsequently produced an invoice and used it to falsify evidence in order to prevent the authorities, insolvency administrators and creditors from accessing three high-priced firearms. The WKStA referred to the urgent suspicion in the following procedural strands: capital increase through money carousel, Villa Eden Gardone and insolvency Rene Benko.

Benko’s lawyer Norbert Wess confirmed to ORF his client’s arrest, which was first reported by the “Krone” – more on this in tirol.ORF.at.

Investigations in Italy against 77 people

The WKStA recently investigated the 47-year-old Tyrolean on suspicion of fraud and fraudulent Krida, among other things. In addition, an arrest warrant was issued against the Tyrolean by the public prosecutor’s office in Trento in Italy in December, but according to the Innsbruck regional court it was rejected; a handover was declared inadmissible. In Italy, investigations are underway against a total of 77 people.

Signa Holding, the parent company of Benko’s real estate empire, filed for bankruptcy in November 2023, triggering the largest bankruptcy in Austrian economic history. According to the insolvency administrator, the total claims add up to around 2.4 billion euros.

WKStA cooperates with Germany

Benko himself filed for personal bankruptcy in March 2024. In addition to the investigations in Austria and Italy, investigations are also underway in Liechtenstein and Germany. The consequences of the Signa bankruptcy in Germany affect numerous properties and projects in city centers, but also the Galeria department store chain.

According to the release, the WKStA has also taken a further cooperation step in the Signa process complex. A joint investigation team (JIT) was formed with the public prosecutor’s offices in Berlin and Munich I. This makes it possible to investigate the complex of procedures across borders more unbureaucratically and efficiently.

The public prosecutor’s office in Germany is also investigating suspected investment fraud in the “Franz” project on the Munich train station forecourt. A large part of the investors’ money is said to have been “used for an improper purpose”.