exclusive
A German was arrested in Portugal who apparently armed himself with others in response to the Corona measures. Loud panorama and CTRL_F it is a man from Rhineland-Palatinate.
A German wanted with an arrest warrant who apparently armed himself with others because of the Corona measures has been arrested in Portugal. According to information from ARD-Politics magazine panorama and the research format CTRL_F This is 39-year-old Joachim T. from Rhineland-Palatinate.
European arrest warrant
Portuguese authorities arrested the fugitive Joachim T. at the end of November. The German was wanted with a European arrest warrant because he is considered the ringleader of a suspected criminal organization. The group is accused of having armed themselves in the fight against the government’s Corona measures.
Joachim T. had followed NDR-Research radicalized in the context of the corona pandemic. He is accused of having founded an armed group under the name “Paladin” at the beginning of 2021. The Koblenz Public Prosecutor’s Office has now brought charges against T. and two suspected accomplices.
At the beginning of 2022, T. had in an interview with panorama and CTRL_F denied having founded an armed group. T. had already been arrested once before, in mid-2021, after using 3D printers to produce a weapon and numerous parts for firearms. He tried to sell the semi-automatic pistol to an undercover police officer.
T. was sentenced to a suspended sentence at the beginning of 2022 because of illegal weapons production. At the time, the court found, among other things, that the physiotherapist T. had lost his job because of his refusal to wear a mask at work.
Weapons construction due to Corona measures
“Health is being politicized,” said T. in an interview with shortly after the conviction panorama and CTRL_F on the Corona measures in Germany. “It always ends in a catastrophe if you look historically at what happens when politicians tell you what is healthy and what isn’t. For me, that’s where the fear came from, a really big fear. And that’s where the idea of defending yourself comes from “That’s how I got into weapon building.” He feared that “the basic order would collapse completely.”
As part of the investigation into the illegal production of weapons, the police analyzed chats and found evidence that Joachim T. was not arming himself alone. Extensive investigations followed, which were led by the Central Office for Combating Terrorism and Extremism at the Koblenz Public Prosecutor’s Office.
According to research by panorama and CTRL_F T. tried to find fellow campaigners and network on Telegram and Facebook, among other things. T. also took part in meetings that were directed against the Corona measures. On the Internet, T. advertised for small armed groups that “go into consistent resistance against criminal arbitrariness.” This meant the state Corona measures. In an audio message, T. asked: “So when will you start organizing yourself armed and defensive?”
The investigators were able to identify two of T.’s suspected accomplices: a 56-year-old and a 63-year-old. All three suspects come from the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate.
Charges against the trio “Paladin”
The Koblenz Public Prosecutor’s Office brought charges against T. and the two other men in the summer. They are accused of forming a criminal organization, forming an armed group and weapons offenses. According to the indictment, T. is considered the ringleader of the association, which is said to have existed between February and May 2021.
The three accused are accused of having “rejected the state measures to combat the corona pandemic and of having seen them as merely an excuse by the state to abolish fundamental rights,” said a spokesman for the public prosecutor’s office when asked panorama and CTRL_F.
From this, the trio “derived the right” to “arm themselves and to violently resist government measures,” according to the prosecution. However, investigators have found no evidence that specific violent actions were already being considered.
Participated in meetings in the forest in camouflage uniform
In the interview, T. confirmed at the beginning of 2022 that he had taken part in meetings in the forest wearing a camouflage uniform. However, he denied allegations that he had founded an armed group. There were no military exercises or shooting training, he said. It was “much more harmless.”
According to the investigators, T. fled abroad in June 2023 at the latest, but was arrested at the end of November. According to the public prosecutor’s office in Portugal, T. is now in custody awaiting extradition. The Koblenz regional court must now decide whether to admit charges against the trio. T’s defense attorney did not want to comment on the allegations when asked.