Pursued for 500 meters

Thief overpowered by butcher has to stand trial

Derntl ran after the Croatian and was able to catch him(Bild: Horst Einöder/Flashpictures)

A Croatian (63) with a criminal record surprised a master butcher from Leonding at his building site in Leonding in the evening. But he got the wrong man, because the burly butcher refused to be intimidated, pursued the intruder and overpowered him. The alleged professional thief is due in court on Tuesday.  

It was more than an unpleasant surprise for the young master butcher Christian Derntl when he suddenly came face to face with an unknown man on the building site of his home in Leonding on August 7 this year.

The 29-year-old had made himself comfortable on the terrace on the second floor at around 9.30 p.m. and was listening to music to relax when he was confronted by an intruder. "Leave me alone or I'll hurt you," the stranger is said to have threatened the businessman.

Escape through the stairwell and across the street
But Derntl was not deterred by this and approached the stranger. He then fled and ran out into the street via the stairwell. "I immediately ran after him," says the master butcher.

The pursuit then continued on foot for around 500 meters and led past the fire station, where Derntl's comrades (he himself is a fire brigade platoon commander) were holding a drill. He shouted to his colleagues that they should help him, which they did immediately.

Restrained until the police arrived
Together, they managed to overpower the stranger and restrain him on the ground until the police arrived. He was a 63-year-old Croatian man who lives in Linz. Stolen goods were discovered in his car and seized.

The Croatian had to spend the night at the police station. Next Wednesday (November 13), the man with a criminal record will have to answer for theft at the district court in Traun. Derntl has been summoned as a witness.