The decision to transfer Josef Fritzl – who kept his daughter captive for 24 years and raped her thousands of times – to a regular prison has been overturned by an Austrian court.
The Vienna Higher Regional Court overturned the decision, made in January, to move the 88-year-old to a regular prison.
The initial ruling was made on the basis that Fritzl no longer posed a danger.
It would have also likely paved the way for him to be released from prison into a nursing home.
But on Monday, the higher court ordered the lower court to establish more facts before reaching a new decision on the transfer, which is expected in April.
Read more: Who is Josef Fritzl?
The house where Fritzl kept his daughter imprisoned for 24 years. Pic: AP
“Unlike the court of first instance, the Vienna Higher Provincial Court came to the conclusion that the necessary facts for a decision on a conditional dismissal have not yet been clarified,” the court said in a statement.
The decision over Fritzl’s potential transfer to a regular prison has been going back-and-forth in court for a number of years and the case has been examined by the higher court several times before.
Prosecutors filed the latest complaint with the aim of overturning the decision made at the beginning of the year.
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Fritzl, who has dementia, was able to follow the brief proceedings in January when his conditional release was ordered, his lawyer Astrid Wagner told reporters after that hearing.
The Austrian, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2009 for crimes including incest, rape, and enslavement – has been in psychiatric detention in a high-security unit at Stein prison.
He has since changed his name to one that has not been made public.
This is absolutely disgusting. He should never be allowed out of prison.
I wonder if he’ll get a job as a prison librarian.
Well, I guess he can finally get a taste of his own medicine.
I’m not sure I believe this. It sounds like something out of a horror movie.
I wonder what the long-term effects of this will be on the victims and their families.
Well, at least he’ll have more room to roam now.
This is so sad. I can’t imagine what those poor victims must have gone through.
This is extremely confusing. Can someone please explain it to me?
I hope this is a sign that he’s finally being held accountable for his crimes.
This decision could have a significant impact on the way we treat prisoners in the future.
I wonder if he’ll get a cellmate named ‘Hannibal’?
I don’t understand why they would do this. He’s a dangerous criminal.
This is an outrage! He should rot in prison for the rest of his life!