Man Threatened Passersby in Vienna with Stabbings: WEGA Operation

Several witnesses called the police, who reported this in a statement on Saturday. Officers from the special unit WEGA overpowered the man at the Museumsquartier using a taser. The Slovak, who was showing signs of mental illness, had existing weapon and residence bans and was taken to a detention center.

Witnesses reported around 12:15 PM that the attacker was shouting loudly in German that he had "three knives" and was behaving extremely aggressively. He threw one of the knives towards a group of people. It landed about a meter in front of them on the ground, and no one was injured. Shortly thereafter, the perpetrator pulled another knife from his backpack and made a stabbing motion towards the passing cyclist. The woman was able to dodge and remained uninjured, reported police spokeswoman Anna Gutt.

48-Year-Old Arrested in Vienna

One of the callers reported that the man continued towards Mariahilfer Straße, where he again shouted loudly and made multiple stabbing motions towards pedestrians. The numerous alerted police officers discovered the suspect at the Museumsquartier and stopped him. However, the man did not comply with the officers' repeated requests to lie on the ground, explained Gutt. Instead, he pulled a trowel from his backpack, with which he repeatedly made stabbing motions towards the officers and eventually held its sharp edge to his own neck.

After the use of the taser, the 48-year-old was arrested. In addition to the trowel, a wrench was secured from him. The knives reportedly used earlier by several witnesses could not be found. The suspect sustained minor injuries during the arrest. He was given initial medical care by an emergency service and then taken to a hospital.

Man Known to Police

The man, who had previously come to police attention several times, was charged with multiple counts of dangerous threats and multiple attempted bodily harm. The Vienna public prosecutor's office ordered his admission to a detention center.

(APA/Red)

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