Police in Austria have arrested at least 15 people who allegedly were part of a gang that targeted people via dating apps.
Over 400 officers took part in the raids that occurred on Friday morning arresting 12 men and three women aged between 14 and 26. They are accused of luring people, many of them gay, to remote locations via fake social media accounts and assaulting the people while filming the attacks.
On their X social media page Styria state police posted that “The group claimed that its actions were aimed at pedophiles.” but stressed their no evidence to show this was the case.
“In reality, the increasingly brutal acts were directed against the homosexual community.”
Police have said they are currently investigating 17 separate incidents that occurred since May 2024. They believe there may be more cases they are unaware of and have asked victims to come forward.
One of the cases is being considered as a potential attempted murder charge.
One of the people arrested was captured in neighbouring Slovakia with the assistance of their authorities. Those detained include eleven Austrian, one German, one Croatian, one Romanian and one Slovak citizen.
