Austria: Court acquits ex-FPÖ leader Strache of embezzlement

Heinz-Christian Strache, the former leader of Austria's right-wing Freedom Party (FPÖ), has been acquitted of embezzlement charges. The Vienna Regional Court ruled that prosecutors failed to prove Strache had misused his party powers for personal benefit in relation to a significant life insurance policy.

The case centered on a life insurance policy worth over 900,000 euros, which the FPÖ took out for Strache in 2007. Prosecutors alleged that in 2014, Strache unlawfully attempted to secure the funds for himself, preventing them from returning to the party upon his potential death. Both Strache and a co-defendant were found not guilty.

Strache and his legal team argued that the policy was intended from its inception as a retirement provision, designed to support him should his political career end abruptly. This scenario materialized in 2019 with the "Ibiza affair," which led to his resignation as vice-chancellor and from his party positions. The affair, stemming from a secretly filmed video, triggered multiple criminal investigations. Strache has now been acquitted in three separate court cases since the Ibiza scandal.