Murder in Karviné: Siblings burned Tomáš (†21) with corrosive substance, court determines who is responsible
Antonín Š. (27) and his sister Renáta P. (38) face murder charges in court after allegedly pouring drain cleaner on the face of 21-year-old Tomáš. The family of the victim calls a 15-year sentence a mockery.
Corrosive burn and seven hours of suffering: Karviné court examines brother and sister's guilt
Blesk.cz is reporting on a trial that began as a night of drinking in an apartment and ended with the death of twenty-one-year-old Tomáš. According to the prosecution, Antonín Š. and his sister Renáta P. poured drain cleaner on his face during an evening gathering in Karviné in January. The corrosive substance burned the young man's face, neck, chest and respiratory tract. He died in hospital the following day from traumatic shock.
Tomáš ended up in Antonín Š.'s apartment after helping him get his heavily intoxicated brother home by taxi. He was promised a dose of pervitin as a reward. All three remained in the apartment. Tomáš reportedly boasted that he could withstand anything — whereupon he fell asleep and vomited on his host's sofa. This, according to the prosecutor, was what prompted the siblings to seek revenge.
They first poured cheese dip, hand cream and air freshener on him. They laughed and took photographs, which both admitted to in court. Then drain cleaner came into the hands of one of them.
Seven hours without help
After the chemical burn, Tomáš suffered for seven hours before the siblings called for an ambulance. He died the following day in hospital. His injuries included chemical burns to his head, face, neck, chest and respiratory tract.
In court, each of the defendants blames the other for responsibility. "I had no idea what Renáta was pouring on him, it looked like flour. I only put dip and air freshener on him. Yes, we took photographs. It was supposed to be a joke for everyone to laugh about when Tomáš woke up. I had no idea anything was wrong with him," Antonín Š. testified to the judge.
Renáta P., by contrast, claims she was in the kitchen on the telephone with a friend at the critical moment. "I saw Tomáš vomiting, I said 'ugh' and left, then he had something white on his face. I don't know what. I didn't put anything on him. I only learned about the cleaner when the police showed me photographs," she stated in court.
The presiding judge, after hearing from both defendants, observed: "One of you two is not telling the truth. We must establish who."
Proposed sentence: 15 years
Both defendants face up to a life sentence for murder committed deliberately and in a particularly cruel manner. The state prosecutor proposes imposing a sentence at the lower end of the range — that is, 15 years.
Tomáš's family, who attended the court, rejected this proposal as far too lenient. "The two of them laughed, took photographs, they enjoyed it. If they were to get only 15 or 16 years for this, then justice would greatly disappoint me. This is an act deserving the electric chair," said Tomáš's brother Jaroslav. Tomáš's mother Růžena added only: "At least we don't have to hear it all again."
Background of the defendants
Antonín Š. worked as a security worker in Zlín. After separating from his partner, he reportedly fell into depression, returned to Karviné and began drinking heavily. His sister Renáta P., who works as a cleaner, lost custody of all three of her children due to drug problems. According to the prosecution, the siblings' reunion culminated in tragedy, in which their mutual acquaintance lost his life.
The trial continues.
Source: Blesk.cz