ATEMAT-Sprenger mess Matura eggs in Gmunden-police are looking for witnesses!

ATEMAT-Sprenger mess Matura eggs in Gmunden-police are looking for witnesses!

In the night of Friday, May 17, 2025, the Maturants of the BG/BRG Gmunden were hit by ATM sprangers during their celebration at the parking lot. According to OE24 previously grew up an ATM in the SEP shopping center. While the Maturants celebrated, the Sprenger patrol in the area and looked for open cars, whereby they presumably tried to secure their escape route.

The situation quickly escalated: First, the perpetrators tried to obtain the car key from three girls. A witness reported that one of the sprinklers sprayed something in the eye of a grade and threatened with a knife. As a result, they stole a gray VW tiguan of an 18-year-old who was loaded with valuables.

arson and escape

After they were in the possession of the vehicle, the perpetrators set fire to the VW-Tiguan in a forest near Aichkirchen, which the fire brigade called on the scene around 10:15 p.m. Four fire brigades were in use to extinguish the fire. The vehicle burned out completely, and the police then carried out evidence and removal of the wreck. So far, there is no trace of the four suspects, and the police are asking witnesses to report.

increase in youth crime

These frightening incidents come at a time when youth crime in Austria increases. According to a report by Krone , a total of 534.193 were filed in 2024, which corresponds to an increase of 1.2 % compared to the previous year. The increase in crimes is particularly worrying by ten to 14 year olds, whose number has almost doubled since 2020. Almost half of the suspects in this age group are foreign citizens, whereby a particularly high proportion of Syrian youthful perpetrators being recorded in the statistics.

The Interior Ministry and the Federal Criminal Police Office reacted to this alarming development by launching a group of operations to combat youth crime. This aims to deal intensively with underage perpetrators who commit a high number of crimes. In addition to the increased police presence, legal foundations are also required to better counter the challenges of youth crime. The clarification rate of the crimes is 52.9 %, the third highest value of the past ten years.

With the events related to the Maturant celebration and the increase in youth crime, it becomes clear that increased measures for education and prevention are urgently needed.