Robbers hijack police car

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General News

Three criminals were caught after robbing a jewellers and hijacking a police car in Tyrol yesterday (Weds).The Serbian gang aged between 21 and 29 threatened staff at a posh jeweller’s shop in Innsbruck with guns before smashing several showcases with hammers and an axe around midday. The trio escaped with several precious watches and various […]

Ukrainian cigarette smuggler caught

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General News

An Ukrainian man has been caught smuggling more than 700 cartons of cigarettes.The 27-year-old was stopped in a routine road check near Villach in the southern Austrian province of Carinthia yesterday (Thurs). Traffic police officers discovered 735 cartons containing hundreds of thousands of cigarettes in the boot of his car and on the vehicle’s back […]

Generali Austria questions strong crime drop

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General News

The property insurance chief of a leading insurer has expressed doubts over the recently presented figures showing a decline in crime.Federal Crime Office (BK) director Franz Lang said earlier this week that 2,617 car thefts were reports across Austria in 2010, significantly fewer than in the previous year when 5,297 such offences occurred. He also […]

German driver survives 40-metre plunge

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General News

A German woman had a lucky escape when she survived a dramatic car accident yesterday (Weds).The 41-year-old sustained injuries to her vertebra after she came off a pass road and fell down a 40-metre ravine near Brandberg in Tyrol.The car, which landed on its roof, had to be salvaged with a rope after the driver […]

Doppelmayr snatches Sochi cable car order

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Business

A leading Austrian transportation systems producer will build the world’s longest cable car at a Russian holiday hotspot.Doppelmayr Holding AG (Doppelmayr) said today (Weds) it was contracted to set up a 5.4-kilometre connection between the Laura ski resort and Krasnaya Poljana near Sochi where the 2014 Winter Olympics will take place.The Wolfurt-based company, which is […]

Vienna man ‘ordered to pay parking tickets for stolen car’

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General News

A Viennese man has claimed that he received more than 20 legal letters over parking offences after his car was nicked – but was not told where his stolen car is.Josef F. said today (Tues) that Vienna city administration officials have sent over 20 notifications with parking fines since his vehicle was stolen in October. […]

High car fuel tax rate exposed by study

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Business

A leading motorists’ association has criticised the high car fuel taxation rate in Austria.Arbö announced today (Mon) that 57 per cent of the price for one litre of normal car fuel and 52 per cent of what drivers have to spend on a litre of diesel are pocketed by the finance ministry.The car club stressed […]

Annual car sale figures pretend business boom

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Business

Car dealers in Austria seem to look back on their best business year in history – but record figures presented today (Tues) are deceiving, experts have warned.Statistik Austria announced that, with 328,563, more cars than ever were registered in 2010. The state agency said this figure meant a 2.9 per cent year on year increase […]

Household energy prices continue to climb

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Business

Austrians had to fork out almost six per cent more on household energy in November than in the same month of last year.The Austrian Energy Agency announced today (Mon) households had to spend 5.8 per cent more on gas, electricity and other products and services last month compared year on year. The authority added it […]

Pedal mix-up sends down SUV

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General News

A Styrian had a narrow escape after he mistook the gas pedal for the brake in a freak accident at a shopping centre car park in Liezen yesterday (Weds).The man sent his brand new BMW over a barrier, through a glass façade and down the multi-storey car park’s light well. Fire-fighters used rope winches to […]