Trio of perpetrators absconded

Jump on hood after brutal robbery

The police have been looking for this man and his two suspected accomplices for weeks.(Bild: P. Huber / LPD)

The Styrian police are asking the public for help after an extremely brutal robbery in Graz at the end of August. Three men had threatened and injured their victim in an apartment and then fled in an adventurous manner. There has been no trace of them for weeks.

The home invasion occurred on August 31 at around 8 p.m. in an apartment building in the Jakomini district. The victim is a 31-year-old Syrian living in Graz. The police are keeping a lid on the background for the time being, but a connection with the drug scene seems unlikely.

Perpetrators were after cash
The suspects apparently knew that there was a considerable amount of cash in the man's apartment and proceeded in an extremely targeted manner, says police spokesman Heimo Kohlbacher. They held a knife to their victim's neck and cheek, demanded money and stabbed the 31-year-old in the thigh.

Initially, the victim refused to give in to the threats. When his tormentors finally put a towel around his head, the Syrian revealed the code for the safe, which contained a "somewhat large amount of cash". In addition to being stabbed in the thigh, the 31-year-old's shoulder was also dislocated and his arm twisted.

Manhunt with surveillance footage
After the crime, a witness spotted the fleeing men in the stairwell and gave chase. When the trio tried to make off in a car, he tried to stop them and threw himself onto the hood. He was dragged several hundred meters. The suspects were eventually able to get rid of their pursuer, after which their trail was lost. The brave witness escaped without serious injury.

Who knows this man?(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Landespolizeidirektion Steiermark)

A surveillance camera at the victim's workplace has identified a suspect, although his identity is still unclear. All three suspects are said to have spoken to each other in Arabic, but no further personal descriptions are currently available. The police are now hoping for useful information from the public.

Information on the crime or the alleged perpetrators is requested from the Criminal Investigation Department of the Graz City Police Command on 059-133-65-3333 or the emergency number 133.