Instead of helping a life-threatening 89-year-old after a collision with a tram, three men took photos of the woman in Vienna’s city center on Sunday and then attacked passersby. An 18-year-old kicked a woman between the legs, a peer grabbed a pedestrian’s buttocks shortly afterwards. The two and a 43-year-old were arrested.
According to the police, the trio was traveling in a tram on line D around 5 p.m. when the 89-year-old wanted to cross the street at the Burgring and was hit by the vehicle. The three men got out and took photos of the victim, so witnesses confronted them. Then one of the two 18-year-olds kicked after a woman and escaped with his companions.
When the emergency services arrived, passersby provided first aid to the seriously injured. One of them said he was a surgeon, police spokesman Markus Dittrich reported. According to the Vienna Rescue Service, the 89-year-old suffered serious head injuries. She was taken to a hospital and was still in critical condition in the intensive care unit on Monday morning, Dittrich explained.
Sexual harassment
According to the witness reports, the police launched an immediate search for the three men who had taken photos and kicked a passer-by. They were stopped near the scene of the accident, where the officials were immediately told of another incident. One of the three had grabbed a passerby’s buttocks and her boyfriend was slapped in the face with the palm of his hand when he confronted the men.
The police temporarily arrested the trio. One admitted that they wanted to take pictures. But they would not have done one after two women “got terribly upset,” said one of the 18-year-olds, according to Dittrich. He accused the other 18-year-old of kicking the woman.
The Slovaks who were not registered in Austria were reported for lack of assistance, the 18-year-old also for kicking, suspected physical assault and the same age group for sexual harassment.
The “selfies” with the victim made according to the witnesses are not punishable unless they are published, Dittrich explained. After the interrogation, all three were released by order of the public prosecutor.
Accidents with trams
It was only in Vienna last week two other accidents with trams came. On Wednesday, a woman on line 62 crashed in front of the Bim in Meidling and died. On Tuesday, an 80-year-old may have crossed the tracks of tram line 11 without looking – he also died at the scene of the accident.
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