A 53-year-old Albanian from Kosovo, on March 23 of this year, was found guilty by the Graz Criminal Court of attempted murder in Graz, Austria.
He was sentenced to 14 years in prison, and has the right to appeal as the decision is not final.
As reported "steiermark.orf.at", the man from Kosovo is said to have seriously injured his friend in July 2025, with gunshots and a hammer, reports Klankosova.tv.
The incident, according to reports, occurred the evening of July 2nd of last year in Seiersberg-Pirka, near Graz. The man in question is said to have shot his friend twice. He was also accused of choking his wife during an argument.
At the start of the trial in January, the accused had denied attempted murder. “It was a small gun with mini-projectiles, a converted alarm pistol,” the defense attorney said at the time. “It was never my intention to hurt him, I just wanted him to leave my house,” the 53-year-old himself had justified himself.
The jury didn't believe him. They saw that they were dealing with a case of attempted murder. After the verdict was announced, the man asked for three days to reconsider.
The Public Prosecutor's Office did not provide any clarification.
How did this case come about, according to the media?grazer.at"?
It all started with an argument after the defendant's wife worked overtime and failed to inform her husband, according to the public prosecutor's office. The woman reportedly suffered a stroke, while the daughter was also reportedly hit. The defendant says the incident with his wife was just "a push-up."
As a result, the defendant's family wanted to leave the house, and so the mother called her brother to pick him up. The father, on the other hand, took a jacket and also put a gas pistol in his pocket and waited in front of the house. When his friend appeared, a fight ensued, and with the intervention of relatives, the two were able to separate for the time being, again according to the report of "grazer.at".
Two shots
Then the 53-year-old pulled out a gun, shot his friend and hit him in the shoulder, another shot hit him in the thigh. Then a hammer was used, with which he hit him in the head. "I have no doubt that he wanted to kill his friend," the prosecutor said in her closing statement, Klankosova.tv reports.
Whatever justification the defendant gave during the trial, "none of them are credible."
The 53-year-old himself sees it differently. He denies any intent to kill: "It was never my intention to kill anyone," the man told the court. He had not correctly assessed the power of the gas pistol he fired.
In fact, as the experts' explanations show, the weapon used had less than a fifth of the power of a regular police weapon. If the victim had moved differently or the bullet had hit just a few centimeters further away, the shooting could have been fatal. The representative of the private parties also saw it this way: "I don't know if they believe in guardian angels, but everyone was saved that evening."
Continuation of the legal process
The case was heard in court two months ago. At the time, the trial was postponed after the 53-year-old denied using the hammer. However, an expert examination based on samples showed that the hammer was used in the attack, reports Klankosova.tv.
Since all the witnesses had already been questioned, on the morning of March 23, the emergency call regarding the case, which the victim's daughter had made on July 2, was also heard. Initially, she reported only a conflict, but a little later stated: "He has a gun."
Loud screams could be heard continuously in the background. The victim managed to escape with the help of his sister and niece. The accused refused to give a statement on this part and until the end demanded his acquittal.
However, this did not happen. After the jury deliberated, the 53-year-old was found guilty of attempted murder, as charged. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison. /Klankosova
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