Burglary Tape Trick: Police Issue Warning in Upper Austria

Affected Regions in Upper Austria

Investigators are advising residents to regularly check their apartment and house doors for suspicious tampering. Anything conspicuous – such as adhesive threads, fine adhesive strips, or other traces – should be documented immediately and reported to the nearest police station. "Anyone who notices such adhesive threads or other suspicious tampering on an apartment door should immediately notify the nearest police station or the police emergency number 133," the authority's warning states.

In addition to checking doors, the police recommend paying particular attention to unfamiliar persons and unknown vehicles in the affected neighborhoods. Mutual alerting among neighbors – for instance, through property management companies or neighborhood apps – can also help ensure that suspicious observations are reported more quickly.

Police Tips for Residents

The gang structure makes solving the cases more difficult: because the perpetrators operate across regional boundaries, the individual crime scenes are sometimes far apart, complicating the assignment of evidence. The State Criminal Police Office has set up a dedicated investigation team and is in contact with other state police directorates. Initial items that could stem from burglaries have already been secured, it was said.

The criminal investigators see parallels to similar methods that have been observed repeatedly in various parts of Austria in recent years. The phenomenon is not new, but the current clustering in Upper Austria is unusual, said a spokesperson for the State Criminal Police Office. The authority does not rule out that the gang was or is also active in neighboring federal states.

Investigations Are Ongoing Across Regions

For the public, the police have compiled several rules of conduct. These include not giving strangers at the front door any indication of one's presence or absence, immediately calling the emergency number in the event of suspicious observations, and not removing burglary traces on one's own, so that evidence can be secured.

With the publication of the warning, the State Criminal Police Office is also urging the public to take possible tips seriously. Even the smallest observations – an unfamiliar vehicle, a person visiting multiple building entrances, or unusual noises in the stairwell – could be relevant to the investigators. Tips are accepted at any police station and at the police emergency number 133.

The police announced that they would step up patrols in the affected neighborhoods and conduct targeted checks during the evening and night hours. Plainclothes officers are also being deployed to identify suspicious persons at an early stage. The aim of the measures is to prevent further burglaries and to apprehend the gang.