Drug deal in Mariahilf: Two men arrested in incident!

Drug deal in Mariahilf: Two men arrested in incident!

The drug problem in Vienna remains an explosive issue, as the recently uncovered raid in Mariahilf shows. On Wednesday morning, officers from the Fünfhaus city police command noticed two men on Gumpendorfer Strasse who were facing each other with their heads bowed and exchanging money. In the eyes of the police, something was wrong. It is suspected that it was a deal involving drug substitutes. The officers then intervened and checked the two men. During the search of the 36-year-old alleged seller, the police found several tablets and cash. The second 36-year-old, who purchased two tablets, was reported, while the seller was temporarily arrested and taken to a prison on the order of the public prosecutor, as Heute reports.

This raid is just the latest case in a wave of drug operations in Vienna. In August there was a comprehensive operation on Quellenstrasse, where the task force to combat street crime arrested a total of five men from the drug scene. Among those arrested were several men of Syrian nationality, aged 22, 23 and 38, who were caught red-handed during a drug deal. A fifth suspect, a 35-year-old Afghan, was also provisionally arrested that evening. During this operation, a total of 94.4 grams of cocaine and 10.9 grams of cannabis resin were seized, as well as cash in typical denominations for drug deals, including a significant sum of 28,355 euros, which was found on the 35-year-old. The 38-year-old main suspect was transferred to a prison after his interrogation, while two buyers were reported, as Kosmo reports.

Drug situation in Europe

But the situation is not just limited to Vienna. The European Drug Report 2024 analyzes the current drug situation in Europe until the end of 2023 and shows that cannabis remains the most commonly used illicit drug, followed by cocaine. According to the report, synthetic stimulants such as amphetamine and methamphetamine, as well as new psychoactive substances, are particularly popular. Health risks and the state of public health are of great importance here, particularly due to drug-related infections, which pose a higher risk for injecting users, according to the European Drug Agency.

In Vienna, drug use remains a sensitive issue that poses major challenges to the police and health services. Harm reduction measures and opioid agonist therapy programs are part of the solutions to counteract the increasing number of drug addicts and the associated health and social damage. It remains to be seen how authorities and the city administration will react to these developments.