70,000 euros loot

Petrol station burglars caught after several crimes

Symbolic image

(Bild: P. Huber)

A Kosovar gang of burglars has been breaking into several petrol station stores since the beginning of November, specifically looking for safes. The police were recently able to arrest a Kosovar (25). The officers caught him in the act.

The Salzburg State Office of Criminal Investigation has been investigating a Kosovar group of offenders since the beginning of November. They are said to have committed at least 15 burglaries (some attempted) in petrol stations in Salzburg, Styria, Upper Austria and Carinthia. The group used force to break into the petrol station stores, in some cases through the wall, looking specifically for safes. The safes were transported away on sack sledges, broken open and the cash stolen from them.

There were burglary tools in the car
The gang also allegedly broke into companies and attempted to break into fire stations. The perpetrators were after special tools such as battery spreaders. According to the police, two men fled from a vehicle in an unknown direction during a check in Lamprechtshausen (Salzburg) on the night of November 27. A battery-powered spreader and other burglary tools were found in the car they left behind.

After several break-ins in Flachgau and Tennengau, a vehicle was spotted in Thalgau on December 16. Here too, three perpetrators managed to escape on foot. The Provincial Criminal Police Office finally established the whereabouts of a 25-year-old Kosovan in Pongau. On Sunday, the man was caught red-handed at a petrol station burglary in Styria and arrested. The total amount of the loot so far is around 70,000 euros. The investigation and manhunt for the other perpetrators are continuing.