All news

Russian asylum seeker killed in Austria was Chechen native, prosecutors say

The Austrian police told TASS earlier that a 43-year-old asylum seeker, a citizen of Russia, had been shot and killed in Gerasdorf near Vienna on Saturday

VIENNA, July 6. /TASS/. The Russian national who was killed in Austria’s Gerasdorf was a native of Russia’s North Caucasian Republic of Chechnya who was using the identity of Martin Beck in Austria under the protection program, a spokesman for the Korneuburg prosecutor’s office, which investigates the murder, told TASS on Monday.

"The killed man was a Chechnya native with Russian foreign passport. I can confirm his being a native from Chechnya. The same is applicable to the two persons who were detained," he said.

"The victim was a participant in the protection program because the police believed his life was in danger. That is why he was given an Austrian name, Martin Beck," he said, adding that the man’s real name is kept secret to prevent risks to his relatives. Apart from that, the man had the right to personal protection in Austria but refused from it. "However his apartment was under police supervision," the spokesman noted.

The Austrian police told TASS earlier that a 43-year-old asylum seeker, a citizen of Russia, had been shot and killed in Gerasdorf near Vienna on Saturday. The suspected murderer, a 47-year-old Russian citizen, was subsequently detained in the Austrian city of Linz. One more man was detained on suspicion of being involved in the murder on Sunday. Both were placed in a detention facility.

OE24 news portal reported citing sources in law enforcement agencies that it had been a contract murder. According to Austria Press Agency, both the killed and the killer are natives of Chechnya.

A spokesperson for the Russian Embassy in Vienna told TASS it hadn't received any requests in connection with the incident. The diplomats are verifying the report and plan to investigate the case.