German police find arsenal of weapons at home of far-right extremist

By Oliver Towfigh Nia

BERLIN (AA) - German authorities have found a large arsenal of weapons from a 55-year-old in the Munich district of Neuhausen, including three hand grenades, the tz daily reported on Friday.

The man, who, according to the General Public Prosecutor's Office, belongs to the so-called far-right Reich Citizens movement, is now in custody.

Authorities initially investigated the man on suspicion of hate speech.

Shortly after the police murders in the southwestern town of Kusel a year ago, he is said to have "commended the murders and at the same time denigrated the reputation of the killed police officers" on Twitter, according to police and the Munich Public Prosecutor's Office.

Therefore, the Bavarian Central Office for Combating Extremism and Terrorism, which is part of the Attorney General's Office, conducted investigations on suspicion of condoning criminal offenses and denigrating the memory of the deceased.

During a search of the apartment on Thursday, the investigators then came across an arsenal of weapons. According to a statement on Friday, these included various knives, several batons, a crossbow, a live semi-automatic pistol, several thousand pieces of live ammunition - and "three original, complete and fully functional hand grenades."

In the meantime, the 55-year-old is also being investigated on suspicion of violations of the War Weapons Control Act and the Weapons Act. All weapons were secured. The Munich District Court issued an arrest warrant, which was executed on Friday.

“This case shows once again how important it is to consistently prosecute hate mail online. Without such, the extensive arsenal of weapons would not have been found today," said Munich Attorney General Reinhard Roettle.

Meanwhile, Munich's police chief Thomas Hampel called the Reich Citizens movement, among other things, a "breeding ground for violence and contempt for human beings."

Reich Citizens do not recognize the Federal Republic of Germany as a state. They negate today's democratic and constitutional structures such as parliament, laws, or courts.