Fritzl, who changed his name, was sentenced to life in prison in 2009 after being found guilty of incest, 3,000 counts of rape, coercion, false imprisonment, enslavement and the negligent killing of one of the seven children he had with his daughter.
As part of the conditions of departure A high-security ward at Stein Prison is designated for patients with mental disorders to join the general prison population, and the Regional Court of Krems an der Donau stated that he “must prove to the court that he has attended regular psychiatric treatment every three months” for a probationary period the following year. 10 years.
For now, “Fritzl’s daily life will remain the same. Prison is prison,” said his lawyer Astrid Wagner.
While his request for parole from the “regular prison system” was denied, Wagner saw the ruling as an “important first step” in seeking his eventual release. She told reporters that she plans to work for her client's early release by next year.
According to Austrian law, prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment are likely to be eligible for parole after 15 years, and in Fritzl's case that will be in March 2024.
After the brief hearing, Wagner said Fritzl told her “how much he regretted what he did.”
“He was actually on the verge of tears,” she told local media.
The atrocities suffered by his daughter Elisabeth made international headlines in 2008 when it emerged that she had been lured into the purpose-built soundproof basement of Fritzl's home in the town of Amstetten in north-eastern Austria in 1984.
According to the authorities, his wife, who lived on the second floor with the rest of the family, was not aware of the atrocities downstairs.
The crimes, which spanned more than two decades, were revealed in the spring of 2008, when Fritzl sought medical care for one of the daughters he had fathered in the basement. The police received a report from the suspicious doctor.
Elizabeth and her surviving children have taken on new identities and moved to an unknown location.
Fritzl's transfer decision is not yet legally binding, and the public prosecutor still has 14 days to appeal, after which the Vienna Higher Regional Court will make its decision.
