Successful raid

Police take 90 illegal firearms out of circulation

The police were able to confiscate a whole arsenal of illegal weapons.(Bild: DSN)

In a joint operation by several authorities, 90 firearms of various categories, more than 10,000 rounds of ammunition and Nazi devotional objects were seized throughout Austria. Several suspects were released.

The Austria-wide Joint Action Day (JAD) was coordinated and led by the Directorate of State Security and Intelligence (DSN) at the end of February. Together with the State Security and Counter-Extremism Offices (LSE) of Lower Austria, Vienna, Upper Austria, Burgenland, Styria, Tyrol and Vorarlberg, house searches were carried out in 14 locations. The Cobra task force was also deployed. The authorities had ten male suspects in their sights.

Karner: "The trail will be continued consistently"
And the officers found what they were looking for: Numerous prohibited items under the Weapons Act, the War Material Act and the Prohibition Act were seized during the operation. According to Interior Minister Gerhard Karner, the operation was preceded by months of investigations. "This course of action will be continued consistently," said the ÖVP politician.

(Bild: DSN)

Justice Minister Anna Sporrer congratulated the justice and security authorities on this success. "Together with the domestic executive, our public prosecutors' offices do outstanding work every day in the fight against extremism and organized crime," she explained. The State Secretary for the Directorate of State Security and Intelligence, Jörg Leichtfried, emphasized: "This successful investigation shows how important professional protection of the constitution is for our democracy."

The joint operation was preceded by a house search in Lower Austria the previous year, during which illegal war material and Nazi devotional objects as well as data carriers were seized. The latter led the investigators on the trail of ten other suspects in Vienna, Burgenland, Lower Austria, Upper Austria, Tyrol, Vorarlberg and Styria.

The illegal arms trade is a serious security problem, explained State Police Director Franz Ruf. "Criminals and terrorists do not acquire their weapons legally. In order to limit or prevent the illegal arms trade, the causes, sources and buyers must be the target of investigations," said Ruf. A joint approach by the judicial and security authorities - also internationally - is essential.

The results of the searches are currently being viewed and evaluated, according to the authorities. Further investigations will therefore continue.