A 21-year-old man is in police custody following four knife-point mugging attacks on women and children in Brno parks over the last three weeks. Photo: Spilberk, Brno Daily.
Brno, Oct 15 (BD) – A serial mugger is in police custody after investigators spotted a pattern in his attacks, all of which took place in Brno parks. Under questioning, he told police that he was homeless and had no other way to support himself. The first mugging took place in late September in the park next to Kounic halls of residence in Zabovresky, when the 21-year-old man threatened three boys aged between 9 and 13 with a knife and demanded their phones, worth almost CZK 20,000, before escaping. The second incident was the next day, when he robbed two 19-year-old women sitting on a bench in Spilberk Park for their phones and around CZK 2,500 in cash.
Four days later, the man struck again in Spilberk Park, robbing two 21-year-old women, again for their phones and a couple of thousand crowns. Three days later he attacked for a fourth time, holding a 24-year-old woman at knife-point for her wallet, though on this occasion he only managed to steal some foreign banknotes of small denominations.
By this point the police had the information they needed. As South Moravian Region police spokesman Bohumil Malášek said: “Based on investigation of the previous robberies, and having gathered a lot of evidence, including security camera shots, investigators were convinced that the robbery was the work of one perpetrator. In addition, they were sure he would attack in the same spot soon. Their hunch came true the next day. The robber appeared in the park under Špilberk and fell directly into the hands of police officers, who were focusing their security patrols on this area. The young man admitted at first questioning that the robberies of the previous days were also his work. He is currently in custody for robbery.”
The man now faces between two and ten years in prison. He is also suspected of other crimes. According to police, the number of muggings in Brno is increasing; there have been 110 cases in the city so far this year.
Get the news first! Subscribe to our daily newsletter here. Top stories of the day in your mailbox every morning.
