Large backpack stolen

Everything stolen from homeless man: “I have nothing left”

The homeless man had all his remaining belongings in the large backpack (top left). Now it's gone.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Markus Wenzel, Philipp Zimmermann, Krone KREATIV)

When a 46-year-old man from Linz returned to his sleeping place in an underground car park in the city center a few days ago, his backpack was suddenly gone—along with all his belongings. Now he only has what he was wearing at the time and is asking the perpetrator for his things back.

Wearing only shoes, jeans, a T-shirt, jacket, and hat, a 46-year-old homeless man came to the editorial office of the "OÖ-Krone" newspaper on Monday in despair – because these clothes are all he has left. When he returned from the Vinzenzstüberl to his sleeping place in an underground car park on Blumauerstraße last Wednesday, his 65-kilogram backpack was no longer there.

Winter without thermal clothing
"Everything I have painstakingly collected over the past few years is gone. I had always added to my pack and perfected it, so to speak," says the homeless man, who wishes to remain anonymous. The backpack contained several warm sleeping bags and thermal clothing – which is very important in the current temperatures – as well as a rain jacket, dishes, medication, a driver's license, and the e-card of the man who was robbed.

Always kept everything clean
The 46-year-old has been living on the streets since 2023. The trigger was his divorce from his wife. After that, everything became too much for the man who, according to his own statements, had "always earned good money and worked hard" before. He had found shelter in the garage in question since December 2024. "I always had a good relationship with the tenants there and was tolerated. I always kept everything clean. I can understand that not everyone is comfortable with a homeless person lying around. If someone had ever told me I wasn't welcome, I would have looked for another place," says the homeless man.

The homeless man kept all his remaining belongings in the large backpack (top left). Now it is gone.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Markus Wenzel, Philipp Zimmermann, Krone KREATIV)

Everything I have painstakingly collected over the past few years is gone.

46-jähriger Obdachloser aus Linz vermisst seinen Rucksack

No one knows anything
After the high-quality backpack disappeared, he asked around to see if anyone had seen anything. He also went to the operators of the large underground parking garage and asked if they had hired someone to remove his belongings. But even there, no one knew where the backpack might have ended up.

Call for help should be food for thought
"I don't think it was another homeless person, because they would have just searched the backpack and not taken the whole thing. Everyone in the scene knows that it's my backpack," says the man, who makes a living collecting cans and deposit bottles. But when the backpack was nowhere to be found, he went to the Bürgerstraße police station and filed a report against persons unknown.

"Please come forward!"
"I'm not concerned about the perpetrator receiving a heavy punishment. Rather, it should be food for thought that homeless people have nothing left anyway and now even my last possessions have been taken from me," says the 46-year-old, hoping that his belongings will turn up again. "If anyone has seen anything, please report it to the police or the Of(f)'n-Stüberl and the Wärmestube – they know me there."