On day two of testimony in the first of a number of criminal cases against Austrian real estate developer Rene Benko, observers expect the court could quickly move to sentencing.
The 48-year-old ex-billionaire is accused — in the case before the Innsbruck State Court — of having defrauded investors out of large sums of cash, €660,000 ($698,000) of which he reportedly attempted to shield by “gifting” it to his mother as “advance rent payments.”
Prosecutors accuse Benko of seeking to diminish his creditors’ claims by transferring funds tied up in his bankruptcy into other private accounts. The accused has pleaded innocent to the charges and refused to answer further questions.
What are the charges?
Benko is facing commercial and personal bankruptcy charges.
Although testimony is slated for the morning and beyond, Benko may hear the verdict in the case — in which he faces between one and 10 years in jail — this afternoon if no further evidence is presented or requested.
In all, there are currently 14 cases pending against Benko. Most charges against the bankrupt former tycoon revolve around fraud and breach of trust.
Benko amassed large sums of money with his company Signa — a conglomerate of more than 1,130 opaquely arranged companies founded in 2000 — until low interest rates sent the behemoth into a financial tailspin that ultimately resulted in bankruptcy.
Edited by: Wesley Rahn