Eight Afghan men between 15 and 20 years old have been arrested after a Turkish man was stabbed to death in an Austrian park last week.
The murder was the consequence of a brawl between a group of young Afghans and a Turkish man near Salzburg station on 21 September, reports The Local. The father of the young Turk became a stabbing victim having asked the Afghans to meet him in the city’s Lehener Park the following day.
A gang of at least ten Afghan men reportedly showed up, carrying knives and bottles. On the other side, according to deputy head of the State Criminal Investigation team Karl-Heinz Pracher, was an unarmed group of four Turkish men and one Austrian-Kosovan.
Events degenerated quickly, resulting in a violent fight in which the Turkish men used wooden boards to shield themselves whilst chasing the Afghan men. After being stabbed several times the 50-year-old victim collapsed in the park – he died in hospital having been driven there by his associates.
The police, called by witnesses, arrived too late to arrest anyone at the scene. They later arrested a 17-year-old Afghan man found near Lehener Park with a fractured forearm and knife wound.
Police have identified a 15-year-old as the main suspect after two of the others named him as being responsible for the fatal knife wounds. The police have sealed off the park and hope forensic evidence will confirm matters, although the young Afghan denies stabbing the father.
Herr Pracher said police have been investigating drug dealing in Lehener Park for several weeks and two of the Afghan suspects had already been in custody on drugs charges. Authorities are now looking into improving security and visibility in the park so other users will feel safer.