German police are planning new arrests as they continue investigating the coup plot of an far-right group suspected of plotting to overthrow the government in Berlin by force.
More than 130 searches and 25 arrests were made on December 7, the number of suspects in the case has now increased to 54, Holger Muench, head of the Federal Criminal Police Department, told ARD TV on December 8. Muench said the number could rise further as the investigation continues.
The media assessed this as an unprecedentedly large-scale operation by German police.
According to anti-terrorism chief Peter Frank responding to German media and quoted by AFP, the network was established at the latest in late 2021, following the "Reichsbürger" (Citizen of the Imperial) ideology and organized as a miniature government. The preparations for the coup d'etat are in the final stages, although the date of the attack on the German parliament has not been set, "it will certainly be taken action".
German media reported that some of the brain-hearted figures, including the nickname "Prince Heinrich XIII", are 71 years old and are a successor to the Ruess family in Thuringen state. He is now a businessman and was arrested in Frankfurt.
A Russian citizen nicknamed "Vitalia B" is said by German press to be the girlfriend of "Prince Heinrich XIII" and is seen as an intermediary to contact the Russian government to seek support. The Kremlin has denied any accusations of Russian interference in the case.
Next is a former lieutenant colonel, who commanded a companies of the heavily armed forces in the 1990s, and was the founder of the German special forces (KSK). Several other soldiers were involved in the coup plot, including one who remains in office and is a member of the KSK. There was also a female judge, Birgit Malsack-Winkemann, who was a member of the far-right AfD.
The suspects include dangerous subjects: Some are following unreasonable beliefs, some have a lot of money, others possess weapons and plan to carry out attacks as well as expand their networks, Muench told ARD TV.
On December 8, police raided the Waidmannsheil hunting motel in Thuringia, owned by the Reuss family. Authorities suspect the 19th-century gothic neo-mental motel has a tower and battlefields on top, which may have been a weapons depot and a meeting place for the island planners.
An unnamed officer told Reuters that police worked all night to find evidence of weapons and explosives.
Deputy Mayor of the town, Andree Burkhardt, said that local people had received a letter informing them that their passports issued by legal German authorities were no longer valid.
"All citizens of Bad lobenstein received a letter last summer. We were told that we are not German because our passports are not German," Burkhardt explained.
"After that, we had the opportunity to submit our German origin documents to the Reuss government. This has of course caused fierce opposition among the people," he added.
The those accused of plotting a coup seem to have planned to storm into the German parliament, taking lawmakers hostages and targeting energy infrastructure in the hope of causing clashes like civil war.
Although the media has highlighted the low danger to democracy in Germany, the incidents should not be underestimated. Taz daily wrote: "Don't be in a hurry to worry. Up to now, our society has not yet found a way to respond to the emerging extreme trends. The danger did not disappear after yesterday's campaign".
In the political world, Secretary of Home Affairs Nancy Faeser spoke of "the denishing of a terrorist threat". German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's spokesman mentioned a "particularly dangerous group aimed at destroying Germany's rule of law".
In addition to condemning, leaders welcomed the dismantling of the coup plot, and called for more drastic measures. The National Defense Committee has included the issue in its agenda, while many military members have also participated.
