exclusive
Around 20 left-wing extremists are currently believed to be in hiding in Germany. Now, according to information from NDR and WDR one of the wanted people was caught in Berlin. The man could face extradition to Hungary.
The number of left-wing extremists from Germany in hiding has increased significantly in recent years. According to the security authorities, around two dozen people from the left-wing extremist spectrum are currently in hiding. These include extremists who are wanted with arrest warrants and who the authorities believe are responsible for serious crimes.
One of these wanted left-wing extremists was arrested according to information from NDR and WDR now caught by police investigators. On Monday, Simeon T. from Thuringia was arrested in Berlin. The apartment in which the 22-year-old man is said to have stayed, as well as other apartments in Jena, were searched. “The arrested person will be presented before the responsible investigating judge later today,” said a spokesman for the Dresden Public Prosecutor’s Office when asked.
Suspicion of the dangerous Mayhem
Simeon T. is wanted by the local law enforcement authorities in Hungary with a European arrest warrant on suspicion of grievous bodily harm. Together with other people from the left-wing extremist milieu, he is said to have attacked several suspected participants in the right-wing extremist “Day of Honor” event in Budapest, an SS memorial march, in February 2023. The attackers are said to have sometimes used dangerous objects such as hammers and batons. Pepper spray was also said to have been sprayed, and several people were apparently injured.
Since the attack, the Hungarian authorities have been searching for several suspects with European arrest warrants. Two suspects from Berlin were caught in Budapest: a 29-year-old man and a 26-year-old woman. The woman has now been released on conditional terms, the man is still in custody.
Accusation of membership in a criminal organization
On October 30, 2023, the Budapest public prosecutor’s office filed charges against the two Germans and an Italian woman. They are said to have carried out several violent attacks on participants in the SS memorial march. In addition to serious and life-threatening bodily harm, the indictment also accuses them of membership in a criminal organization.
In Germany, the Dresden Public Prosecutor’s Office initiated a so-called mirror investigation into the investigations in Hungary and was looking for other fugitive suspects. Simeon T., who has now been caught, was arrested on the basis of a German arrest warrant; an extradition request from the Hungarian authorities has not yet been submitted, as a spokesman for the Dresden Public Prosecutor’s Office announced.
The German security authorities are currently looking for several people associated with the left-wing extremist Lina E., who was sentenced to five years and three months in prison by the Dresden Higher Regional Court in May for, among other things, membership in a criminal organization.
Among those wanted is Johann G., Lina E.’s former partner, who is classified as a “threat” and is believed to have committed serious crimes. The Saxony police have been searching for G. since September. A reward of 10,000 euros has been offered for information about his whereabouts.