Investigators in several federal states have taken action against members of a chat group called “Vereinte Patrioten”, which is said to have planned bomb attacks and kidnappings of “well-known public figures” on Telegram. This was announced by the general public prosecutor’s office in Koblenz on Thursday together with the State Criminal Police Office of Rhineland-Palatinate.
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According to information from the ARD political magazine Report Mainz, Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD) was also to be kidnapped in an action called “Klabutermann”. After the results of the investigation became known, Lauterbach himself declared that he did not want to be intimidated by the alleged kidnapping plans.
According to the Attorney General’s Office, there were searches of 20 properties in Rhineland-Palatinate, Baden-Württemberg, Brandenburg, Bavaria, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein and Thuringia on Wednesday. Around 270 officers, including special units, were deployed.
Right-wing extremists, Reich citizens and corona deniers
According to this, twelve Germans aged 55, 54, 50, 42 and 41 are accused of preparing a serious act of violence that is dangerous to the state and of violating the Weapons and War Weapons Control Act.
Weapons, ammunition, cash, gold bars and silver coins were seized during the searches. Four suspects were arrested and arrest warrants had been applied for. “Anyone who owns weapons of war, plans attacks and strives for a system overthrow must feel the consistency and full severity of the state,” said the interior minister of Rhineland-Palatinate, Roger Lewentz (SPD). “We do not tolerate right-wing violent criminals and enemies of the constitution. The despicable aspirations of these perpetrators have been nipped in the bud.”
Uprising on “Day X”
According to information from the Tagesspiegel, the “United Patriots” chat group is apparently a typical telegram group from a mixed scene of extremists. The members include right-wing extremists, Reich citizens and fanatical corona deniers. The group was still looking for like-minded people for a violent uprising on “Day X”. In security circles it was said that the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution played a role in uncovering the group. Interior Minister Lewentz also referred to a reference to the chat group by the Rhineland-Palatinate Office for the Protection of the Constitution.
Specifically, according to the Attorney General’s Office, the chat group “United Patriots” planned to destroy power supply facilities in addition to the kidnappings in order to trigger a nationwide power outage.
“According to the accused, this should cause civil war-like conditions and ultimately overthrow the democratic system in Germany,” the statement said.
Investigations against the group have been ongoing since October last year. On Wednesday, the authorities in Rhineland-Palatinate announced the arrest of several suspected members of the group.
Lauterbach does not want to be deterred
“Some Covid deniers are not concerned with the fight against vaccinations or corona requirements. They are fighting against our basic democratic order,” Health Minister Lauterbach told the “Bild am Sonntag”.
“But they won’t be able to do that. I will not let this deter me, but will continue to support the entire population. This example shows how divided our society is. Overcoming this division and regaining trust remains the goal of my policy.” Lauterbach had repeatedly reported threats against him.
In the annual report for 2021, which was presented last week, the Office for the Protection of the Constitution in North Rhine-Westphalia mentioned massive hostilities against the Federal Minister of Health. “The spectrum of attempts at intimidation includes threats by e-mail, a rally in front of his private apartment, damage to his car and the smashing of a window pane in his office in the Bundestag in Cologne,” the report said.
Fanatics want civil war
Last week, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office and the Federal Criminal Police Office launched a raid in eleven federal states against several right-wing extremist groups. Among other things, it was about the activities of the “Nuclear Weapons Division”, which also wants to trigger a civil war with terrorist attacks. (with dpa)