Oktoberfest police arrest 36-year-old man for filming under woman's dirndl

Tent confrontation and security intervention

On Wednesday, 30 September 2026, visitors inside a Munich Oktoberfest beer tent noticed a man positioning his mobile phone beneath a woman's traditional dirndl dress. A 25-year-old woman observed the 36-year-old suspect placing his device directly under the skirt of her 26-year-old companion. A second companion in the group intervened immediately, taking the mobile phone from the man's hands and confirming that an illicit video recording had been captured on the device. When festival security personnel arrived to eject the suspect and his male acquaintance from the premises, both men displayed aggressive behavior toward the staff. Security workers subsequently restrained the suspect and seated him in handcuffs against the exterior wall of the tent while awaiting police assistance.

Police response and legal framework

A patrol unit from the dedicated Oktoberfest police station arrived at the scene shortly after the security confrontation. Led by Police Chief Inspector Max Brunner, the officers interviewed the security staff and took custody of both men. Brunner described the suspect as heavily intoxicated and uncooperative during their initial exchange, adding that law enforcement maintains zero tolerance for such actions.

We have now clarified the situation to the point where we can say we have a suspect who definitely filmed under the lady's skirt.

Officers confiscated the smartphone to preserve digital evidence. Under German criminal legislation enacted in 2021, unauthorized visual recordings of intimate body areas carry potential prison sentences of up to two years. Authorities noted that if any captured footage had already been uploaded or distributed over the internet, the perpetrator would face additional criminal charges.

Police processing and bail deposit

Officers transported the 36-year-old suspect and his companion to the on-site Wiesnwache police station for formal intake. The second man was initially questioned in the capacity of a witness to the incident. Both the 26-year-old victim and her female witness also reported to the station to submit detailed witness statements regarding the event. Because the suspect is an Italian national lacking a registered residential address in Germany, prosecutors required him to submit a financial security deposit before granting him temporary release. The bail amount, set in the low four-figure euro range, amounted to roughly two months of his regular salary. The suspect was subsequently released from the station pending formal judicial proceedings.

Festival security and prevention campaign

The intervention represents one of several recent upskirting cases identified on the festival grounds, following an earlier case reported by Munich police in preceding days. Victims frequently do not notice illicit filming at the moment it occurs because perpetrators deliberately conceal their devices, with recordings often surfacing later on the internet. In response, Munich police established a targeted "No Upskirting" prevention campaign prior to the start of the event, encouraging victims and witnesses to alert security personnel immediately upon noticing suspicious activity. Police spokesperson Franziska Romig reported that while officer deployments are tracking higher than in the previous edition, the total volume of crimes and administrative infractions remains closely aligned with the 784 incidents recorded in 2025.