Following the large-scale anti-terrorism raid against the so-called Reich citizens about a year ago, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office has filed charges for the first time. The authority in Karlsruhe announced on Tuesday that a total of 27 suspects are accused of, among other things, being members and supporting a terrorist organization. The proceedings are to be conducted before the Higher Regional Courts in Frankfurt am Main, Munich, and Stuttgart. These courts must decide whether to allow the charges and set a trial.
Reich Citizens Raid: Federal Prosecutor’s Office Arrested 25 People
On December 7 of last year, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office had arrested 25 women and men in several federal states, Austria, and Italy. Among them were former AfD member of the Bundestag, Birgit Malsack-Winkemann, as well as a soldier from the Special Forces Command (KSK) of the German Armed Forces. One of the ringleaders is the entrepreneur Heinrich XIII. Prince Reuß.
The circle of suspects is much larger and continues to grow in the course of the investigations. Many of them are in pretrial detention.
The accused were said to have planned to overthrow the political system in Germany. They would have deliberately accepted dead. They had already worked out the basics of structures for their own system of government, the investigators had explained at the time. Heinrich XIII. Prince Reuß was supposed to act as the head of state. Various departments had also been allocated: for example, former judge Malsack-Winkemann was supposed to be responsible for justice.
Accused Intentionally Accepted Dead
The central body of the group is a “council.” According to the investigators, an interim government with the allied victorious powers of the Second World War was supposed to negotiate the new state order in Germany. “From the group’s perspective, the only central point of contact for these negotiations is currently the Russian Federation.”
A “military arm” was supposed to “eliminate” the democratic rule of law at the level of municipalities, districts, and communities, it was said. The Federal Prosecutor’s Office stated that soldiers and police officers were specifically targeted for the coup. According to the investigations, another plan was to forcibly enter the German Bundestag with a small armed group.
Who are the “Reich Citizens”?
“Reich citizens” are individuals who do not recognize the Federal Republic and its democratic structures. Last year, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution counted around 23,000 followers in the scene (2021: 21,000). According to the data, more than five percent – about 1250 people – are right-wing extremists. About 2300 of the “Reich citizens” and “self-administrators” are considered to be violence-oriented.
