AfD
Halle public prosecutor files charges against Höcke
Björn Höcke is the chairman of the Thuringian AfD, which is classified as right-wing extremist. photo
© Martin Schutt/dpa
The Thuringian AfD state association is classified as right-wing extremist. In a speech in May 2021, Chairman Höcke is said to have used the banned SA slogan. Now an indictment follows.
The Halle public prosecutor has filed charges against the chairman of the Thuringian AfD, Björn Höcke, which is classified as a right-wing extremist.
The background is a speech by Höcke at the end of May 2021 in Merseburg, in which he repeated the banned SA slogan “Everything for Germany!” should have used, as the public prosecutor announced on Monday. Höcke was sufficiently suspicious as a result of the investigation. Höcke is accused of using signs of unconstitutional organizations. According to the information, the charges were brought up on May 16 at the Halle Regional Court.
The 51-year-old is accused of having known the origin and meaning of the slogan of the NSDAP’s Sturmabteilung (SA). Before his political career, Höcke was a history teacher. According to the public prosecutor, Höcke denied the criminal relevance of his statement through his defense. The public prosecutor’s office in Halle pointed out that sufficient suspicion does not mean a prior conviction and that the presumption of innocence applies.
The Thuringian Judiciary Committee only lifted Höcke’s immunity in this case again in April, thus paving the way for indictment. The Thuringian AfD regional association is classified and observed by the state constitutional protection as a secured right-wing extremist.