The woman who was allegedly left to freeze to death by her boyfriend near the summit of an Austrian mountain has been identified.
Kerstin Gutner, 33, died less than 150 feet from the summit of Grossglockner mountain on Jan. 19 — both led and left there by her experienced mountaineer beau Thomas Plamberger, the Daily Mail reported.
The Salzburg native described herself as a “winter child” and a “mountain person” in social media profiles, according to the report.
Plamberger, 39, now faces negligent homicide charges for the night-time, winter excursion that saw Gutner, an inexperienced climber, trek through over 12,000 feet in -4 degree Fahrenheit conditions up toward Austria’s highest peak.
“At approximately 2:00 a.m., the defendant left his girlfriend unprotected, exhausted, hypothermic, and disoriented about 50 meters below the summit cross of the Grossglockner. The woman froze to death. Since the defendant, unlike his girlfriend, was already very experienced with alpine high-altitude tours and had planned the tour, he was to be considered the responsible guide of the tour,” according to a statement from the Innsbruck public prosecutor’s office.
The couple were effectively stranded from 8:50 p.m. onwards — but Plumberger did not make an emergency call or give out any distress signals when they saw a police helicopter fly nearby at 10:50 p.m., according to prosecutors, local outlet Heute reported.
Webcam images showed the couple’s camp near the peak of Grossglockner, where Gutner was found dead.
Plumberger only called Alpine Police officers at 1:35 a.m. and then put his phone on silent, prosecutors alleged.
About a half-an-hour later, he left Gutner to die on the icy mountain — even neglecting to cover her with available emergency blankets, according to the report.
prosecutors said Gutner was an inexperienced hiker. Kerstin Gurtner Memorial
At 2:30 a.m. he was spotted by a trail cam descending the mountain, with Gutner left far behind near the summit.
Plumberger reached out to emergency services again at 3:30 a.m., prosecutors alleged, according to the report from Heute.
Lawyer Kurt Jelinek, who represents Plumberger, maintained his client’s innocence and insisted Gutner’s death was a “tragic, fateful accident,” according to The Daily Mail.
Tributes poured in for the inexperienced hiker on a memorial page for Gutner.
“Rest in heavenly peace,” one commenter wrote.
“Behind the tears of grief lies the smile of remembrance,” another chimed.
Another said, “Deeply saddened to learn of this death, I wish to express my condolences. Impossible to find the right words.”
Plumberger was charged on Thursday, with his trial expected to kick off in February.
If convicted, he could be sent to prison for up to only three years.
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