Police seize blank-firing pistol after shots from Vienna balcony

A 27-year-old man allegedly fired several shots from his apartment balcony in Floridsdorf, a Vienna district, on Saturday afternoon, ORF reported. Police seized a blank-firing pistol and ammunition from his home.

A resident heard several loud bangs at about 4 p.m. and initially thought fireworks had gone off. Looking outside, he saw a man handling a firearm on a balcony and called the police.

Officers from the Ziegelofenweg police station, the Floridsdorf city police command, the police dog unit and the WEGA special unit responded. Police identified the man’s apartment and reached him by phone, then asked him to leave. He complied.

A search of the apartment found the pistol and ammunition. The weapon was confiscated. The Austrian man was reported to the authorities; a weapons ban was already in force against him.