Hairdresser thwarts robbery

“Suddenly he threatened dad with a knife”

A knife-wielding man stormed into a hairdressing salon in the town of Saalfelden. But the owner was able to chase him away. (symbolic picture)(Bild: Roland Hölzl)

In Saalfelden, a Syrian hairdresser's family showed courage: father and sons put an armed Austrian on the run. The knife-wielding man had tried to rob the salon. "It was dangerous, we were scared," one son describes the anxious moments to the "Krone". But his father bravely stood in the criminal's way.

One day after the attempted robbery of a hairdressing salon in Saalfelden, the shock has still not been fully digested. On Monday morning, a 23-year-old Austrian stormed into the store and suddenly started arguing.

"He shouted around. Then he went to the till and threatened my dad with a knife," says the 21-year-old son of the owner of the Krone, describing the anxious moments. He also works in the store and was busy with a customer at the time.

64-year-old businessman did not want to hand over the money
The problem: the 64-year-old father doesn't speak German and didn't know what the gunman wanted from him at first. "I told dad to give him all the money," the son continues. But despite holding a knife in front of him, the father refused. "It was very dangerous, we were scared," says the son.

The frustrated criminal kept up the pressure and then tried to steal the company cell phone, when another of the owner's sons came in the door and the Austrian stormed off.

Alerted police officers caught the perpetrator after a short escape 
But a short time later, his escape came to an end: the sons immediately alerted the police. Only a few minutes later, the officers caught the thwarted robber at a petrol station during a manhunt. The 23-year-old was taken to Salzburg prison. The hairdressing salon reopened as normal after the dicey incident, fortunately no one was injured.