What began as a routine pick-up of their daughter ended with a police operation: A 38-year-old father and his 36-year-old wife became so enraged at a school in St. Pölten on Thursday that teachers had to call the police. The reason: Their daughter had previously sustained a minor injury from a fall.

School Drama Escalates: Parents Lose Control, Police Use Pepper Spray

When the Syrian couple wanted to leave the school building, the man was stopped – but instead of calming down, he approached the police officers wildly gesticulating and shouting loudly. When he resisted his arrest, the officers used pepper spray. The 38-year-old was then taken to the police detention center and treated by the emergency services. According to the police, he damaged a cell there.

His wife is said to have tried to push the police officers away. She was taken to the University Hospital St. Pölten along with the daughter to have the child's injury examined. Both accused will be reported to the public prosecutor's office in St. Pölten after the investigation is completed. Two police officers were injured during the operation.

Asylum Revocation Procedure Initiated

Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner (ÖVP) demanded "severe consequences" on the occasion of the incident and called on the federal government to take action: "We do not accept such behavior here in Lower Austria. I expect parents and students, regardless of their origin, to behave properly in our schools and towards our teachers." Tougher penalties for those unwilling to integrate must be "at the top of the future federal government's agenda," she referred to her demand for fines of up to 2,500 euros. Social welfare recipients who cannot pay these amounts must "have their benefits reduced until they understand how we interact here in Lower Austria."

"That violence and intimidation are now even being brought into our schools is absolutely unacceptable," responded FPÖ state parliament member Martin Antauer in a statement. "It must not be that our children and teachers suffer under such conditions. Safety and order must come first."

The Federal Office for Immigration and Asylum has initiated a revocation procedure regarding the protection status, it was further stated. A prerequisite for revocation is a criminal conviction, it was communicated.

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.