Man receives 12 years for stabbing wife 13 times

A man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for attempted murder after stabbing his wife 13 times in Vienna in May, ORF reported. The woman survived the attack, but the verdict is not yet final.

The 46-year-old man, who is from Afghanistan, accepted the verdict. Prosecutors described the attack as an atrocious and treacherous act. His defence lawyer said he had been emotionally overwhelmed, leading to an entirely uncontrolled act.

The couple lived in another federal state, but the woman had temporarily moved to Vienna’s Donaustadt district for medical treatment and to be near her children, who live there for their studies. The man suspected, without any concrete evidence, that she was cheating on him.

After an argument by telephone, he drove to Vienna and tried to persuade his wife to return home with him immediately. When she refused, he pulled out a pocketknife with an eight-centimetre blade and stabbed her 13 times in the back while she was sitting on the floor and playing with their three-year-old son.

The woman’s adult children came to help after hearing her cries. They overpowered their father and held him until police arrived. Two of them suffered minor injuries.

The woman’s wounds penetrated both sides of her chest and damaged lung tissue. She survived only because she received rapid emergency medical treatment.

The man told the court that he could not remember the stabbings. An expert assessment found that he had probably had a blood alcohol level of 1.5 promille at the time, but that he was still legally responsible and capable of understanding his actions.