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16. 11. 09. - 16:00

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16. 11. 09. - 16:00

Woman killed as she turns up at attempted car theft

By Thomas Hochwarter

A crazed arsonist gunned down a nurse in a Vienna clinic car park when she spotted him trying to steal her car, police said today (Mon).

Vienna police said Helga L. – who worked at the Hanusch hospital in Vienna-Penzing – died as she tried to stop Franz P. from taking her car in the hospital’s underground car park.

Police said the 49-year-old – who weighed more than 100 kilograms and was around 180 centimetres tall – defended herself when she spotted the man trying to steal her car on Saturday morning.

The 50-year-old thief, who killed his victim with two shots, was captured by CCTV leaving the car park and police said he told a passerby on his way out that "there’s a dying woman lying in there."

They said he had tried to steal the car after attempting to burn down his own home, which is near the clinic.

But when the robbery turned tragic he went to his ex-wife’s home in Rohrbach, Styria and set fire to it.

Investigators said the couple stayed in touch after divorce in 2005 and the man – who had no criminal record – went to the house and started a fire in a first-floor guest room, but then apparently fell down the stairs injuring himself as he tried to leave.

He was taken into custody after neighbours called police and firemen when they saw smoke coming from the house around 10pm.

Cops said the man admitted his actions "almost immediately" during questioning and explained he was "angry and drunk". He told them the nurse was "in the wrong place at the wrong time."

Investigations continue and police said they had confiscated a gun found in the remains of the Rohrbach house.

Police officials also dismissed rumours the nurse may have known the man and said in a press conference today that the killer had not known his victim.

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