Robber duo in custody

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(Bild: LPD NÖ)

Shock for a man in Schrems in the district of Gmünd (Lower Austria)! He caught two burglars in the act of trying to steal his car. While trying to stop the duo, he was dragged by the moving car. 

The man from Waldviertel will certainly not forget that night. At around 3 a.m. on January 25, he surprised two burglars who wanted to steal his unlocked car from the garage of his detached house in the municipality of Schrems in the district of Gmünd. The burglar duo were reversing their car out of the garage when the owner suddenly caught them in the act. The man is said to have ripped open the driver's door of his car and there was a brief scuffle with the driver. The victim is said to have been dragged a short distance with the moving vehicle, according to a police statement. 

A second car parked next to the garage was hit during the escape attempt. The driver fled on foot and his accomplice also fled. The two strangers tried to steal the car again, but this time the vehicle key was missing.

Duo struck in Lower and Upper Austria
The attempted theft is the work of a duo who have committed numerous burglaries in Lower Austria and Upper Austria since January. According to the police, the suspects are a 27-year-old woman and a 31-year-old man from the Czech Republic. They are said to have struck mainly in the Waldviertel and Linz. The damage amounts to around 60,000 euros. The couple was arrested in their "stash", a rented apartment in Heidenreichstein in the district of Gmünd.  

Part of the seized loot

(Bild: LPD NÖ)

Stun gun and baton found
14 completed and six attempted burglaries, one attempted robbery and one attempted grand theft, one burglary in a residential building as well as the use of prohibited weapons (baton, stun gun) and money laundering were detected by investigators. The burglars targeted crime scenes in several communities in the Waldviertel districts of Horn, Gmünd, Waidhofen an der Thaya and Zwettl as well as in the city of Linz.

The two men stole mainly power tools, scooters, e-bikes and two cars. According to the police, the duo allegedly sold some of the stolen items in Prague, but the majority of the stolen items were returned to the victims.

The 27-year-old and the 31-year-old largely confessed. They were taken to Krems prison.