Police uncover cannabis shipment and 15 burglaries

Police in Austria have linked an international group to a 200-kilogram cannabis shipment and solved 15 burglaries across four states, ORF reports. Two men were arrested over the drug transport and four people were detained in connection with the burglaries.

Police said an international tip about the shipment reached Austria’s Federal Criminal Police Office on July 12. The cannabis was being transported from Spain in a Bulgarian truck, which travelled through France and either Italy or Slovenia. Officers watched the truck enter Austria at the Spielfeld border crossing the following day and followed it to its planned unloading point in Traiskirchen, in the Baden district.

Police arrested the 58-year-old Bulgarian truck driver and a 30-year-old Slovenian citizen living in Vienna, who was to receive the drugs for the group. Both men partially admitted their involvement during questioning and were remanded in custody in St Pölten on the order of prosecutors in Graz.

Half of the cannabis was intended for the 30-year-old. The other 100 kilograms were to be taken to Greece after the handover in Traiskirchen. Police put the drugs’ street value at more than two million euros. A further six kilograms of suspected cocaine seized in the investigation turned out to be a drug-free imitation.

The burglary investigation led to the arrests of three Chilean men, aged 25, 29 and 40, in a Vienna apartment on August 19. They are suspected of targeting homes in Lower Austria, Vienna, Styria and Burgenland. A 43-year-old Argentine woman described as a possible accomplice was arrested in Rome on Sunday under a European arrest warrant. She is expected to be extradited to Austria in the coming weeks.

Investigators said the suspects operated in different combinations and may have travelled from Italy to Austria for stays of two to five days. They rented vehicles in Vienna and used false documents and identities. Police described the 15 burglaries as five separate series; one of the attempted break-ins was unsuccessful.

The group allegedly stole gold jewellery, silver and gold coins, designer handbags and glasses. In some cases, safes were taken and forced open in wooded areas. The stolen goods were valued at about 450,000 euros, while property damage was at least 200,000 euros. A pistol stolen in one burglary was later found with ammunition in a wooded area. The three men were remanded in custody in Korneuburg.