Part of a gang

ATM burglar must serve two years in prison

The man and accomplices blew up ATMs in banks in Mühlviertel.

(Bild: FOTOKERSCHI.AT / KERSCHBAUMMAYR)

He and his accomplice acted extremely brutally and blew up an ATM in Reichenthal (Upper Austria). The material damage was much higher than the loot. But now a 22-year-old from the Netherlands will take it a little easier. The man has to spend two years behind bars. The sentence is already final.

The 22-year-old from the Netherlands was sentenced to two years in prison in Linz on Monday for his involvement in two ATM blasts in the Mühlviertel region in December 2023. The damage amounted to hundreds of thousands of euros and the perpetrators were extremely brutal. The man, who is said to have traveled from the Czech Republic with accomplices to commit the crimes, confessed and the trial was therefore short.

High property damage
On December 13, a bank foyer in Reichenthal (Urfahr-Umgebung district) was forced open and the ATM was broken into with explosives. "Scenes that you would normally only see in a movie," is how the public prosecutor described the procedure. The perpetrators stole 71,500 euros and caused more than 200,000 euros worth of damage. One day later, the next coup took place in a similar manner: Almost 143,000 euros were taken from an ATM in Schlägl (Rohrbach district), with property damage estimated at 162,000 euros.

Gang from the Netherlands
Investigators believe that the structures behind the ATM burglaries, which have become more frequent in Europe in recent years, are located in the Netherlands around Utrecht and Amsterdam, where the direct perpetrators are recruited from a huge pool of young people. According to the authorities, those behind the scenes train them and send out teams whose members often do not even know each other beforehand. According to criminologists, those involved in the crimes work in a division of labor and are uncompromising in their actions, as evidenced by the high level of property damage.

Police were on the lookout
After the crime on December 13, the police were already on the lookout on December 14; there were apparently indications that the perpetrators were about to strike again. The accused was arrested in the Czech Republic after the second coup while on the run, and the loot was seized. According to the public prosecutor's office, three suspected accomplices are known by name, one of whom is in custody in Germany, while the others are still being sought.

Numerous offenses
The public prosecutor's office charged the 22-year-old defendant with intentional endangerment by explosives - the offense that justifies the high penalty of up to ten years - as well as commercial grand theft by burglary as part of a criminal organization, forgery of specially protected documents and suppression of documents - due to the false or stolen license plates on the getaway car. Born in Turkey, he had worked in the Netherlands as a self-employed plasterer. He had several previous convictions for theft, dealing in stolen goods and the sale of weapons.

Defendant confesses
During the preliminary proceedings, the 22-year-old only admitted his involvement in the blast on December 14, after which he was arrested in the getaway car. Probably also in view of the evidence - the same procedure for both coups, the same getaway vehicle and not least his movement profile - he then also confessed to the second crime on Monday and expressed his remorse: "I'm sorry, it was a big mistake." He had learned from seven months in custody and wanted to return to his job, the defense lawyer asked for a lenient sentence.

Final judgment
The court then dispensed with questioning the witnesses and did not question the defendant any further about the crimes. The verdict after one and a half hours: A guilty verdict as charged and two years in prison. In view of the remorseful confession and the young age of the accused, the sentence was rather lenient and could have been up to ten years. Two insurance companies were awarded around 6000 euros and 120,000 euros respectively as private parties. The verdict is already final.