Polish football ultras arrested for robbery on Austria's A9 highway

In November last year, a group of Polish pseudokibice returning from an away football match blocked a car carrying two Croatian nationals on the A9 highway near Graz, Austria. The assailants used tools to damage the vehicle, brutally beat the men and stole their belongings.

Austrian police initially detained 25 people. Following joint investigations by Polish and Austrian authorities, evidence was gathered that led to court proceedings. In June, eight Polish citizens were convicted in Graz and sentenced to 18 months to four years' imprisonment for aggravated robbery and attempted serious injury. Three additional suspects were subject to European Arrest Warrants. They were arrested in Poland – one at Warsaw's Chopin Airport immediately after landing, two in apartments in Warsaw and Ząbki, and another in Radom after returning by plane. All three await extradition to Austria.

Police spokesperson Jacek Wiśniewski confirmed the cooperation between the Warsaw Capital Police Department and Austrian investigators, noting that the coordinated effort enabled the swift arrests and that the extradition process is now pending.