Party leader Chrupalla in hospital after AfD rally – criminal police are investigating
Chrupalla has been at the head of the AfD for almost four years
Source: dpa/Bernd von Jutrczenka
AfD leader Chrupalla was taken to hospital during a campaign rally. It is still unclear what exactly happened. The AfD speaks of an “assault incident”, the police initially only confirmed that the politician was receiving “medical care” and that the criminal police were investigating.
bAccording to the party, there was an “actual incident” against federal chairman Tino Chrupalla at an AfD election campaign rally in Ingolstadt. Chrupalla was therefore taken to a hospital, the AfD federal office said on request on Wednesday. Chrupalla’s health condition is “still being clarified”.
A spokesman for the Upper Bavaria North police headquarters only told WELT that there was currently a police operation on site. Previously they had “Donaukurier” and the “Young Freedom” reported about the incident.
Late on Wednesday evening, police headquarters announced that Chrupalla had to “receive medical attention backstage” before his speech began. “The politician was subsequently taken to hospital, although no obvious injury was apparent at the time,” one said notice. In order to “clarify the detailed circumstances of this medical incident,” further investigations were carried out by the Ingolstadt Criminal Police Inspectorate.
A police spokesman said police wanted to investigate whether third parties could be responsible for the incident. But there is no evidence of an attack. That is the current status of the investigation.
Police are asking visitors who took photos or videos at the campaign event to make them available to police.
The Bavarian AfD’s top candidate for the state election, Katrin Ebner-Steiner, was there in Ingolstadt, but did not see a possible attack herself. “He was in great shape and took a photo with me. Shortly afterwards I saw that he was lying in the ambulance and the ambulance drove away,” she told WELT. “I heard from people close to Tino Chrupalla that he should stay in the hospital overnight to check his health.”
In Bavaria, the state parliament will be elected on Sunday. A spokesman for the Bavarian AfD parliamentary group said Chrupalla should have given a speech in Ingolstadt. Shortly before that, an incident occurred in a crowd. Chrupalla was then taken to the hospital. The spokesman in Munich said he couldn’t say anything more at the moment.
The 48-year-old Saxon Chrupalla has been at the head of the AfD for almost four years. He initially led the party together with Jörg Meuthen, who left the AfD at the beginning of 2022. Chrupalla and Alice Weidel have been the party’s leadership duo since June 2022. You are also chairwoman of the AfD parliamentary group.
Weidel had forgone a planned public appearance in the Bavarian-Thuringian border town of Mödlareuth on Tuesday, German Unity Day. A spokesman said there had been a “security-related incident” the weekend before last.