The German Federal Prosecutor’s Office announced on Wednesday that brought charges of terrorist financing and incitement to commit a serious violent act threatening the state towards the man who called for attacks on prominent politicians on the darknet and raised money for potential rewards for carrying them out. TASR informs about it with reference to the DPA agency.
Police officers from the Federal Criminal Office (BKA) arrested the suspect in Dortmund in November. He was taken into custody on the basis of an arrest warrant issued by the investigating judge of the Federal Court of Justice.
According to the prosecutor’s office, a man with Polish roots has been calling for attacks on politicians, public officials and other personalities in Germany since at least May of last year. To this end, he ran an anonymous platform on the darknet that contained lists of names, self-imposed death sentences, and instructions for making explosive devices. The Senate of the Higher Land Court in Düsseldorf must now decide whether and when the case will go to trial.
The weekly Der Spiegel reported that the list contained more than 20 names of potential victims – including ex-chancellor Olaf Scholz, former chancellor Angela Merkel and former ministers of the federal government. Investigators also found “criminal files” and “death sentences” against judges and prosecutors, as well as far-right, racist and conspiratorial content on the anonymous platform.
Investigators found that the man is a supporter of the extreme right-wing Reich Citizens movement (Reichsbürger), which wants to restore the German Empire within the borders of 1871. He has been known to the security forces since 2020, when he was involved in protests against restrictions imposed during the coronavirus pandemic.
