Inspector Chance assisted – Wanted jewel thief was routinely checked

Criminal honor – no matter what happens: After the coup at the jewelry store in Villach in September last year, one of the perpetrators rushed to Italy in the getaway car – and left his accomplice unceremoniously behind. He then tried to escape on foot over the Wurzen Pass, where he was captured shortly before the Slovenian border as part of a large-scale manhunt.

However, his dishonorable partner managed to leave Austrian territory. How the researchers were finally able to understand how the license plate was recorded. However, the researchers knew quite quickly who they were hunting. “We secured his DNA traces and ultimately a hit in the database. The suspect was not unknown to the police,” said Dietmar Koller, head of the Villach criminal department.

A career criminal as he appears in the book. Meanwhile, the 37-year-old literally ran away. What led the Romanians to Ireland. And here the investigators were finally assisted by Inspector Chance. Apparently, the Romanian had no idea that his identity had already been revealed by the Carinthian researchers – and so he identified himself on the ’emerald island’ with his original documents.

“The suspect was discovered during a routine identity check. Since we issued an international arrest warrant for him, alarm bells immediately started ringing among our Irish colleagues when he compared his details,” says Dietmar Koller. After being extradited to Austrian authorities, the 37-year-old is now awaiting trial in custody in Klagenfurt.