Germany charges 8 people in crackdown on far-right terror group

BERLIN

The German Federal Prosecutor's Office on Thursday filed charges against seven suspected members and one supporter of a right-wing extremist terrorist cell.

It accuses the defendants, some of whom are very young, of various offenses, including membership in a domestic terrorist organization, attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and aggravated assault.

In May, the Federal Prosecutor's Office took action against the group, which calls itself the “Last Wave of Defense,” with arrests and searches.

Five suspects were arrested in three German states – Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Brandenburg, and Hesse. The police searched 13 properties there, as well as in the eastern states of Saxony and Thuringia. Three other suspects were already in custody at the time.

The Federal Prosecutor's Office accuses seven of the defendants of being members of the young terrorist group, three of whom are even alleged ringleaders. Investigators charge the eighth with supporting the group. Some are also accused of attempted murder, particularly serious arson, and property damage, while others are accused of aiding and abetting these crimes.

The office attributes three attacks and plans for attacks to the group. These include an arson attack on a cultural center in the eastern town of Altdobern, an attempted but unsuccessful attack on an inhabited asylum seekers' home in the eastern town of Schmolln, and plans for an attack on an asylum seekers' accommodation in Senftenberg, another eastern town.



Suspects aim for overthrow of political system

According to the Federal Prosecutor's Office, the “Last Wave of Defense” sees itself as the last resort for defending the “German nation.”

“Their goal was to cause the collapse of the democratic system in Germany through violent acts, particularly targeting migrants and political opponents,” the office said.

At the time of the raid in May, the defendants were between 14 and 21 years old. Due to their age, some of them had to appear with their parents before the investigating judge at the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe. They have all been in pretrial detention since then.