Berlin
Charges against four police officers from the “Alex Guard”
The police station on Alexanderplatz has existed since 2017. Photo
© Monika Skolimowska/dpa
The police station at “Alex” is intended to help curb crime. However, police officers are said to have mistreated someone seeking help and covered up the crime. Now there is an accusation.
Four police officers from the station at Berlin’s Alexanderplatz are said to have mistreated a man who wanted to report a theft. Around two and a half years later, the men are now due to appear in court. The Berlin public prosecutor’s office has Charges were brought against the officers at the “Alex” police station at the time, the authority announced.
They are said to have beaten the man on July 16, 2021, so that he was partially unconscious. In order to cover up the story, the police officers are said to have later made up a story. The indictment accuses them of, among other things, bodily harm in office, persecution of innocent people, coercion in office and deprivation of liberty.
According to the public prosecutor’s office, the main accused is a 35-year-old who has already been in court and has since voluntarily quit the police service. Co-defendants are three of his former colleagues aged 26, 27 and 30. According to the public prosecutor’s office, they were initially transferred.
Knocked down with a powerful blow
According to the investigation, the later alleged victim went to the “Alex guard” around 2 a.m. on the night of the crime because his wallet was missing. The main defendant is said to have opened the door for the man, but then hit his arm down – possibly to stop him gesticulating. The man is then said to have spoken to another police officer and pointed to the 35-year-old. He brought him to the ground with a powerful blow and continued attacking him there. The three colleagues are said to have secured this procedure so that the 35-year-old could continue to mistreat the man.
Later, after the investigation, the police officers are said to have agreed on a story: The man then threw a lighter and cell phone at them. An investigation was therefore initiated against him for assaulting law enforcement officers.
According to the investigation, the alleged victim was held and tied up. The public prosecutor’s on-call service is then said to have been contacted to request that a blood sample be taken for an alcohol measurement. The lawyer on duty is said to have been lied to, so that blood was ultimately taken from the alleged victim without any legal basis or consent.
Ex-police officer sentenced to two years and three months in prison
This is not the first time that the main defendant has been in the focus of investigators. According to the public prosecutor’s office, the ex-police officer was sentenced to two years and three months in prison in August 2022 for violating official secrets and bribery. However, the verdict is not yet final because the 35-year-old has filed an appeal. The Berlin Regional Court must decide on this. This is also responsible for the current indictment.
The “Alex Guard” was set up in December 2017. Previously, Alexanderplatz had fallen into disrepute due to a series of fights, stabbings and pickpocketings. The authorities therefore stepped up their measures with their own police investigation group “Alex”, the “Alex Guard” and a specially assigned public prosecutor. Through these measures, the police and judiciary want to keep a better eye on the groups of perpetrators active there and investigate them more quickly and effectively.