 He became a professional chauffeur in the service of Franz, Count Harrach, an Austro-Hungarian nobleman and recent acquaintance of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand.Lojka accompanied his employer and met the Archduke on his trip to Sarajevo on 28 June 1914 where he served as Ferdinand's chauffeur on his fateful journey.Shortly after leaving the Philippe Barracks where Ferdinand and his wife had joined the Colonel's car they were attacked by a young Bosnian, who threw a grenade at it.