Overview
- The man is charged with grossly negligent homicide, with the main hearing scheduled for February 19, 2026, at the Regional Court in Innsbruck and a maximum penalty of up to three years in prison.
- The indictment faults the planning and equipment choices, citing a late start, the partner’s inexperience, lack of bivouac emergency gear, and the woman’s use of snowboard soft boots on a high‑alpine route.
- Prosecutors say he continued despite storm‑force gusts, subzero temperatures and severe windchill, and should have turned back at the Frühstücksplatzl waypoint.
- The accused allegedly left the woman near the summit around 2 a.m. without moving her to shelter, wrapping her in a bivy sack or foil blankets, or removing her heavy pack; she later froze to death a few meters below the top.
- Investigators report missed and delayed rescue contacts, including a phone set to silent, no signals to a helicopter around 22:50, a first police call at 00:35, and rescue notification at 03:30, while the defense denies misconduct and calls the case a tragic accident.