Chronicle
According to the police in the Vienna districts of Leopoldstadt and Alsergrund, climate activists have let the air out of at least one tire in more than 50 SUVs. They left notices on the windshields to warn the owners.
Police said the notes identified them as members of the Tire Extinguishers group. Two suspects, a 24-year-old and a 25-year-old, were caught and reported to a passer-by.
Passersby observed two activists
According to the police, the group’s action, which had already occurred in Vienna before Christmas in Döbling, took place on Friday night from around 3 a.m. until Friday noon. The activists had access in several places in the two districts, for example around Julius-Tandler-Platz and in Tempelgasse.
The forces of the police inspections Julius-Tandler-Platz and Otto-Wagner-Platz became aware of the 24-year-old and the 25-year-old through a tip from an eyewitness. “The two immediately confessed. They were reported at large,” said police spokesman Markus Dittrich on Saturday. The climate protectors stated that they did not know that deflating tires on other people’s vehicles might be considered property damage.
Accident at previous action
In the previous action in Döbling, an affected SUV driver is said to have noticed neither the “slap” nor the warning and drove off, whereupon the car slid onto the sidewalk and is said to have touched a passer-by, who was uninjured. The police advise: “Before you start your journey, make sure that your car is roadworthy. If you suspect your vehicle has been tampered with, call the police immediately.”