TL;DR
A 30-year-old German man spent last winter skiing for free across multiple Tyrolean resorts using a forged industry pass and an old employee ID - until he got caught at the Stubai Glacier in February. The total damage to lift operators came to almost €4,000. He avoided a criminal record through an Austrian diversion agreement, but will have to repay the outstanding damages plus an additional €600 penalty.
A 30-year-old German man skied free across Tyrol for most of last winter using forged documents - and nearly got away with it.
According to a report published by German-language ski industry outlet Skinachrichten.de, the man - a German national residing in Tyrol - used a forged free-pass document issued in the name of the WKO, Austria's Federal Economic Chamber, combined with an old employee ID from a previous job at a ski lift operator. Together, the two documents made him appear to be a current industry employee entitled to complimentary lift access - a legitimate benefit that Austrian cable car companies extend to staff within the industry.
The scheme worked across multiple ski resorts in Tyrol throughout the 2025-26 winter season.
Caught at the Stubai Glacier
The fraud came undone in February at the Stubai Glacier, one of Austria's most visited glacier ski areas, located approximately 40 kilometres south of Innsbruck. An inspection triggered further investigation, which revealed the Stubai incident was not an isolated one but part of a pattern spanning several resorts across the region.
Total damages to the affected lift operators were assessed at just under €4,000.
