Three search operations

What was a German man doing with a suitcase on a mountain at night?

Numerous emergency services were involved in the search.(Bild: ZOOM Tirol)

The strange action of a German (43) kept the emergency services in Landeck, Tyrol, on their toes over the Christmas holidays: witnesses heard the man's cries for help as he had climbed up the mountain with a suitcase on wheels and had to spend Christmas Eve at an altitude of 1,400 meters. However, before he could be found after several searches, he had already returned home.

The Landeck police were first notified at around 1 a.m. on Christmas Eve that cries for help could be heard coming from the Schlosswald forest in the Angedair/Öd area. "Subsequently, an immediate search was carried out by the police patrol that had been notified", according to the police. However, the search was unsuccessful and was called off.

Calls for help again
At around 9 a.m. on Christmas Day, calls for help were reported again from the same area. This time, the police launched a large-scale search operation involving the Alpine police, mountain rescue service including search dogs, fire department, police helicopter and several drones. Further information prompted the emergency services to move their search to the opposite side of the slope in the Thial and Katlaun areas.

The search continued into the evening hours, but again in vain. The operation was called off at around 6.50 pm. 

Numerous emergency services were involved in the search.(Bild: ZOOM Tirol)

Drones were also used several times.(Bild: ZOOM Tirol)

Hunter discovers traces of a suitcase
Until a hunter discovered footprints and the imprints of a suitcase in the Thial-Tobel, a steep valley near Landeck, at midday on St. Stephen's Day. Another search operation was launched, this time with a police helicopter and drone and a service dog. At an altitude of 1400 meters above sea level, the emergency services actually discovered a trolley, which also contained a purse.

Based on the documents inside, the items could be traced back to a 43-year-old German from the Esslingen district near Stuttgart in the state of Baden-Württemberg. The German police were called in and reached the 43-year-old unharmed. 

Got stuck in the rough terrain
As it turned out, the German had traveled to Landeck by train on Christmas Eve. He walked in the direction of Gramlach and then followed a forest path towards Thial-Tobel - all this with his rolling suitcase in tow, mind you. "There he left the marked trail into rough terrain and eventually got stuck," the police report.

The man's cell phone wasn't working, so he called loudly for help. But because no one came, the German had to spend the night outdoors. On the morning of Christmas Day, he left his suitcase behind, descended into the valley, got on the train and returned to Germany.

The German did not provide any information as to why he had not reported the incident after reaching the city.

Die Polizei in einer Aussendung

Background unclear
The 43-year-old told the police that he had suffered minor injuries during the incident. It is unclear what he was doing on the mountain and why he did not report the incident when he was back in the valley. The police investigation is ongoing.