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Teen troublemaker arrested after death threats against foreign minister

The Local Austria
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Teen troublemaker arrested after death threats against foreign minister
Photo: Paul Gillingwater

A Chechen teenager has been arrested by special forces police in Vienna after making death threats on social media sites against the Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz.

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The 17-year-old made headlines last year after he and a group of teenagers filmed themselves repeatedly hitting a 15-year-old girl in the face and posted the shocking video on Facebook. The girl had to be treated in hospital for serious facial injuries including a fractured jaw. The Chechen youth later apologised to the girl, posting a letter to her on Facebook.

The youth was active on Facebook last week, posting abusive comments about Kurz after the government announced its plan to ban Muslim women from wearing the full-face veil in public. The 17-year-old described Kurz as the “son of a whore” and threatened to kill him.

Police spokesman Paul Eidenberger told the Krone newspaper that the youth was arrested early on Thursday morning, after armed police stormed his apartment. However, he did not confirm the reason for the arrest and refused to give any further details - apart from saying that the 17-year-old will be questioned on Thursday and the prosecutor will then decide whether he should be kept in police custody.

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