The looting and theft following the catastrophic floods in Germany last month were less than the authorities feared, but there were still some. And it did not pass without a Bulgarian trace, reports “Deutsche Welle“.
Earlier this week, police in Cologne detained a Bulgarian citizen coming from the floodplains who was driving in “mud-soaked clothes”. Bags and a suitcase of tools and clothing were found in the trunk of the rented car, the origin of which the 32-year-old man gave contradictory information. There was also a hand grenade in the glove compartment.
The bags from the trunk were confiscated, and the alcohol test established that the Bulgarian citizen had driven the car with more than one per mille. The drug test was also positive.
Police say the man, who has previous violations of the law, has been involved in flood-affected areas and is suspected of looting. The grenade from the toad turned out to be discarded and safe.
Immediately after the floods, a number of cases of theft of cables and electrical appliances were registered. Among those detained are a man who robbed a pharmacy, a jewelry thief from a jewelry store and two burglars in a supermarket.
The Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia, Armin Laschet, said: “I am outraged to hear that people are returning to their devastated houses and that the thieves have already looted the few surviving properties.”
After the floods, the police allocated a serious resource to prevent theft and looting.
“There were definitely no hordes to storm the supermarkets,” said a police spokesman from Aachen. There are not many cases against alleged thieves. But that hasn’t stopped some media outlets from hastily and exaggerating the news of a wave of thefts and robberies. For their part, the police tried to clarify.
The interior ministry of one of the most affected provinces, North Rhine-Westphalia, said it had no major problems with looting or theft. On the other hand, there were mass demonstrations of solidarity, mutual aid and sacrifice in the affected areas, which were reported by the authorities and the media.
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