Vienna: Man suspected of harassing teenagers in supermarket

Allegations and status of the proceedings

The suspect has not yet been arrested. The investigations into the case are ongoing, as the police announced. The suspect now works at a somewhat larger store in Vienna-Simmering. According to the Vienna police, no incidents have been reported from the new workplace to date.

The police provided no further information on Thursday regarding the specific course of the alleged acts or any possible background. The identity of the suspect was also not made public. The authorities are referring to the ongoing investigation, in which, among other things, the statements of the affected girls and any potential further witnesses are to be evaluated.

Possible background

The case is being handled by the Vienna State Criminal Investigation Office. When the investigations are expected to be concluded initially remained unclear. Should the suspicion be substantiated, the suspect faces criminal consequences for sexual harassment, coercion, and bodily harm. According to Austrian law, the sentence depends on the assessment of the individual offenses.

According to its own statements, the police are taking the case seriously and are asking any additional possible victims or witnesses to come forward. Tips are being accepted by the Vienna State Criminal Investigation Office. The authorities announced that they would fully clarify the matter.

Previous workplace and current branch

Vienna's tenth district of Favoriten and the eleventh district of Simmering directly border each other. According to police information, the fact that the suspect moved to another branch in the neighboring district following the incidents is not particularly notable so far. The investigators emphasized that the review of the sequence of employer changes is part of the ongoing proceedings.

The police did not disclose, upon inquiry, how many comparable cases there have been in Viennese supermarkets in recent months. The authorities also did not comment on possible labor law consequences for the suspect – such as dismissal by the current employer.