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In a potentially unprecedented move from Austria, two underage brothers, dubbed “system breakers” by police and Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP), could face deportation. In fact, the two have such an extensive criminal history totalling 2,200 reported criminal offenses, that their case is setting records in Austria and could reshape how underage criminal migrants are handled in the future.
The Interior Ministry is reportedly moving to revoke the residence permits of the pair, who have Serbian roots and live in Vienna, due to the sheer volume of criminal charges against them—the highest among all juvenile offenders in the country. The news magazine Profil reported the story, noting the two are currently in pre-trial detention.
The boys, a 14-year-old and his 16-year-old brother, were reported to authorities over 2,200 times last year. The younger brother is allegedly responsible for approximately 1,500 burglaries, many of which occurred before he turned 14 and were thus initially unpunishable under the law.
He was jailed this March, shortly after his 14th birthday, following the wreck of a stolen car in Vienna.
The Federal Office for Immigration and Asylum (BFA) has already begun proceedings to revoke the teenagers’ residence permits. However, the Interior Ministry stressed that a conviction is a necessary precursor for the revocation.
“An investigation is underway – criminal proceedings will follow,” the Interior Ministry stated. If successful, the revocation would be “linked to further measures – such as deportation to the country of origin,” which Profil indicates would be the first such case.
The brothers’ family situation is complex: Their mother lives in Vienna but reportedly does not have custody, and their father has already been deported.
The grandparents in Serbia have refused to assume custody, so the Vienna Child and Youth Services is managing the case and assessing whether state institutions in Serbia could take responsibility for the boys.
Nikolaus Tsekas of the probation service association Neustart warned Profil against adopting a purely “repressive” strategy against such offenders, arguing that juvenile criminals require “long-term support.”
Tsekas cautioned that deportation would merely displace the issue, potentially promoting “a life underground.”
