E-scooter thief in Vienna: A trip to the cinema ends in arrest!

E-scooter thief in Vienna: A trip to the cinema ends in arrest!

A nighttime visit to the cinema ended with an unpleasant adventure for a 46-year-old and her companion in Vienna-Rudolfsheim-Fünfhaus. After riding their e-scooters to the film, they returned to find that the scooters, which they had previously secured with a bike lock on a stand in Gablenzgasse, had disappeared. With the help of cell phone tracking, the woman took a decisive step and informed the police to get the stolen vehicles back. This quick reaction was anything but superfluous, as e-scooters can quickly become targets for thieves the Federal Criminal Police Office reported.

The police didn't wait long. In Fuchsgasse, the officers discovered one of the e-scooters leaning against a park bench. There were three people sitting around the site, but suspicion quickly grew against a 36-year-old man. He gave contradictory information in the interviews and was temporarily arrested on suspicion of burglary. When searching the suspect, the police also found a small amount of narcotics. The second e-scooter remains untraceable while the man is in police custody, reports Vienna.at.

Theft of e-scooters is trending

As this situation shows, e-scooters are not only popular means of transport in Vienna, but also a target for thieves. In 2023, the police in Austria registered a total of 3,233 property crimes related to e-scooters. Over 1,500 of the scooters were simply stolen. These are often left unlocked in public spaces and offer quick access to thieves Today.at reported.

The safety situation of e-scooters is worrying, which is why experts like Dr. Armin Kaltenegger from the Board of Trustees for Road Safety (KFV) recommends increased safety measures. These include the combination of several locks, such as a U-lock in conjunction with a brake disc lock. He also advises parking the scooters in locked rooms and taking expensive components such as batteries with you after parking them. Simple locks proved particularly vulnerable to theft, as shown in a test in which two children cut a lock in just six seconds.

In summary, it can be said that preventative measures when parking e-scooters are extremely important. To avoid future incidents like the one in Rudolfsheim-Fünfhaus, e-scooter users should securely anchor their devices and always keep an eye on them.