Image: Christian Schmidseder
In mid -January and suddenly, the number of pick -up steels in Linz shoots up: for Christian Schmidseder, head of investigation theft of the State Criminal Police Office of Upper Austria, a sign that “criminal tourists” are again at work. Around 50 thefts were recorded, 20 of them in Linz, the rest in Vienna. The two state criminal offices took up the investigation. Now a group of perpetrators could be assigned: a 21-year-old and a 23-year-old, both Romanian citizens, are said to be responsible for the theft series. The men were caught at a snack bar on the Carinthian Ring in Vienna, where they paid with a recently stolen ATM card. Not least because of the overwhelming burden of proof through video security, they were confident.
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“Hotspot” train station
Most pickpockets pass on heavily frequented, public locations, confirms Schmidseder. So also this: “A hotspot was the Linz train station, but also shopping centers or public places with a high frequency.” In Upper Austria, the city of Linz is Hauptschauplatz from pickpockets, especially the train station. Only the Plus City and the Haid Center in Linz-Land are still among the crime scenes. The remaining districts in the state are almost negligible, says the division manager. The two accused would have stolen mainly from backpacks and bags, and that in teamwork: “One distracted, the other stole,” says Schmidseder. In doing so, they home to both cash as well as ATM cards and cell phones, which they then resold. The two men are also said to have made transfers to Romania.
Image: Christian Schmidseder
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Image: Christian Schmidseder
Source: Nachrichten
