Overview
- The Oberster Gerichtshof dismissed René Benko’s appeal on Thursday and confirmed the October 2025 conviction tied to a €300,000 gift to his mother that a court found harmed creditors.
- The court set aside a partial acquittal for a €360,000 advance rent payment and ordered that specific subcase to be retried at the Landesgericht Innsbruck, requiring judges there to re-examine whether the payment deprived creditors of assets.
- Benko remains in pretrial detention since January 2025 and continues to deny the charges; a separate December 2025 Innsbruck ruling earlier gave him a 15-month suspended sentence for removing valuables from creditors’ reach.
- The WKStA has prepared a third indictment alleging serious fraud and is pursuing about 17 investigative threads, including inquiries that extend into Germany, keeping the legal exposure wide-ranging.
- Next steps include the Innsbruck retrial, further OGH hearings on other appeals, and a re-assessment of sentencing that could affect creditor recoveries and cross-border enforcement of any penalties.