Eisenstadt court to begin trial over newborn's death in Burgenland

A trial is set to begin on October 21 in Eisenstadt involving five defendants accused in the death of a newborn baby found at the Nickelsdorf border crossing in January.

The primary defendant, a 17-year-old mother, faces charges of killing a child during birth. Prosecutors allege she killed the girl through strangulation and blunt force trauma to the skull. Four relatives—her mother, sister, brother, and brother-in-law—are accused of participating in murder by assisting her and concealing evidence of the crime.

If convicted, the 17-year-old faces up to two and a half years in prison. The relatives face much harsher potential sentences, including life imprisonment, while a fourth defendant, a juvenile, faces between ten and 20 years. An autopsy confirmed the infant was born alive and died due to traumatic brain injury.