Austria: Corruption trial against Porsche Holding supervisory board Wolf started

Wolf is said to have secured a tax exemption of around 630,000 euros by promising career help for a tax officer. The defendants deny the allegations.

Lawyer Norbert Wess and the industrialist Siegfried Wolf in the regional court: Among other things, Wolf sits on the supervisory board of Porsche Automobil Holding SE. Photo: Helmut Fohringer/APA/dpa

Vienna. In Austria, the trial against the industrialist Siegfried Wolf and the former finance minister Hans-Jörg Schelling began on Tuesday in the Wiener Neustadt regional court. The core of the matter is the accusation that Wolf secured a tax exemption of around 630,000 euros by promising career help for a tax officer.

The defendants deny the allegations. The industrialist Wolf sits on the supervisory boards of Porsche Automobil Holding SE, the parent company of the Volkswagen Group, and the automotive supplier Schaeffler, among others. The former boss of the auto supplier Magna also worked for Russian companies such as the GAZ Group for a long time

The Economic and Corruption Public Prosecutor's Office (WKStA) accuses Wolf of offering a tax official support in her career so that in return she would issue an additional tax demand of around 630,000 euros. He is therefore charged with bribery and abuse of office, and the co-accused official is charged with abuse of office and bribery. Former Finance Minister Schelling is accused of attempting to incite abuse of office.

According to the indictment filed in March, the offer was made in 2018 at a meeting at a highway rest stop. The official approved the application and thereby acted against the legal opinion of her responsible deputy. The decision on the tax waiver was later overturned as illegal by the Austrian Federal Finance Court and this assessment was confirmed by the Administrative Court as the highest court.

The WKStA began its investigation after, among other things, coming into possession of chat messages between those involved.