27 e-mails written

Bomb threatener caught! Swiss man (20) in custody

The bomb threats led to numerous police operations in Austria.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Jauschowetz Birbaumer KroneLesereporter)

Following a European arrest warrant, a 20-year-old Swiss national has been located in Switzerland. He is said to be responsible for the numerous bomb threats throughout Austria. These have repeatedly caused large-scale evacuations in recent weeks.

In recent weeks, Austria has been shaken by a series of bomb threats that have disrupted public life in various parts of the country. The security authorities have located the suspected author of the threatening e-mails in Switzerland. A European arrest warrant has been issued for him.

27 threatening emails sent throughout Austria
The threats were directed at a large number of facilities, including train stations, schools, a shopping center, a bank and a government building. The cities affected stretched across the whole country, from St. Pölten and Klagenfurt to Bregenz, Graz, Linz and Eisenstadt. The authorities have been investigating a total of 27 anonymous bomb threats across Austria since September 30. On Sunday, the Leoben train station in Styria was the last to be affected.

The pattern was always the same: A threat is received by the provincial police headquarters of the respective province that explosive devices have been planted - all were sent by email. A spokesperson for the Ministry of the Interior did not want to comment in detail on Monday on how many threats the Swiss man was specifically responsible for. As the suspect is still at large in his home country, it is not yet possible to go into more detail about the current state of the investigation.

The police in Graz had initially received a bomb threat.

(Bild: Jauschowetz Christian)

Based on the content of the letter, the police assumed that the same author was at work in all cases. However, the European arrest warrant that had already been issued had been forwarded to the Swiss authorities for examination and execution. "This may take several weeks," said the Ministry of the Interior. The ministry emphasized on Monday that the background still needed to be clarified.

Investigations were now largely carried out by the State Offices for State Protection and Counter-Extremism (LSE) in conjunction with the Directorate for State Protection and Intelligence (DSN). Swiss security and judicial authorities are also involved. For reasons of investigative tactics, details have so far been sparse. 

Start of the series of threats in Graz
The series began in the Styrian capital of Graz. According to police spokesman Heimo Kohlbacher, the police received an e-mail stating that explosive devices were going to explode at the main railway station. In the evening, the police finally gave the all-clear. Shortly afterwards, train services and access were reopened.

Sending the message to the police by e-mail was also used in all other cases. Linz Central Station was cleared and closed off. Passengers who were initially still on the station premises read the warning on digital displays: "Alarm. Please leave the building immediately." After two hours, the police gave the all-clear.

The bomb threat in Linz led to large-scale closures.

(Bild: Kerschbaummayr)

Hundreds of commuters were affected in Salzburg, thousands on more than 50 trains from all directions. Train services had to be suspended. Trains that would have gone to Salzburg were stopped at stations. 

High costs of police operations
The bomb threats caused considerable disruption to public life. According to ÖBB, around 450 trains and thousands of passengers were affected by the first five bomb threats at stations alone. In total, train services were interrupted for around eight hours, the Austrian Federal Railways explained last week.

Such extensive police operations are expensive. A bomb threat can fulfill various criteria, such as a dangerous threat. The number of people threatened is decisive: if the number of people is smaller, it constitutes a dangerous threat, which can be punished with up to three years imprisonment.

However, if the general public or a larger group is threatened, the offense of coercion of land applies, which is punishable by six months to five years. If this threatens the death of several people, the penalty can even be up to ten years. Operations with sniffer dogs and bomb detection and defusing equipment can cost tens of thousands of euros, depending on the effort involved.

Back in May, the police in Linz had to evacuate the train station due to a bomb threat. The alleged perpetrator is said to have been a young Swiss man who was undergoing psychiatric treatment at the time. It is not yet known whether this is the same perpetrator as the bomb threats in September and October.