SHARE
COPY LINK

CRIME

Murder charges levelled at neo-Nazi suspect

Prosecutors have added murder charges to a list of allegations against National Socialist Underground member Beate Zschäpe. She has now been formally implicated in ten murders allegedly carried out by the neo-Nazi terrorist group.

Murder charges levelled at neo-Nazi suspect
Photo: DPA

German state prosecutors have requested that Zschäpe be charged with involvement in the killings, the Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper reported on Saturday. She has also been implicated in 14 robberies and attempted murder in connection with arson.

Zschäpe already stood accused of being a founding member of the far-right terrorist organization, the National Socialist Underground (NSU). But her involvement in the group’s alleged murder of nine immigrant shop owners and a policewoman has long been a source of speculation.

Now it appears that prosecutors at the Federal Prosecutors Office believe she played a more instrumental role as an accomplice to fellow NSU founding members Uwe Mundlos and Uwe Böhnhardt than previously thought.

The Zwickau-based group was uncovered late last year when Mundlos and Böhnhardt were found dead in an apparent murder-suicide pact after a botched bank robbery.

Zschäpe is accused of setting fire to the trio’s Zwickau home, while an 89-year-old neighbor may have been next door. She handed herself in several days later.

It’s been requested that the 37-year-old’s detention time be extended to allow for further investigation.

Zschäpe is yet to comment on the latest charges, but is said to have enlarged her defence team. She has already been in custody for nine months while prosecutors probe the case.

Several other suspected NSU associates have been arrested since the group came to the attention of police in November.

The Local/ccp

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

BUSINESS

Elon Musk visits Tesla’s sabotage-hit German factory

Elon Musk travelled Wednesday to Tesla's factory near Berlin to lend his workers "support" after the plant was forced to halt production by a suspected arson attack on nearby power lines.

Elon Musk visits Tesla's sabotage-hit German factory

The Tesla CEO addressed thousands of employees on arrival at the site, accusing “eco-terrorists” of the sabotage as he defended his company’s green credentials.

With his son X AE A-XII in his arms, Musk said: “I am here to support you.”

The billionaire’s visit came a week after power lines supplying the electric carmaker’s only European plant were set on fire in an act of sabotage claimed by a far-left group called the Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group).

READ ALSO: Far-left group claims ‘sabotage’ on Tesla’s German factory

Musk had said then that the attack was “extremely dumb”, while the company said it would cost it several hundred million euros.

A week on, the lights have come back on at the site, but Andre Thierig, who heads the site, said on LinkedIn that it would “take a bit of time” before production is back to full speed.

Industry experts have warned that the reputational impact caused by the sabotage on the region could be more severe than the losses suffered by Tesla.

Tesla’s German plant started production in 2022 following an arduous two-year approval and construction process dogged by administrative and legal obstacles.

Tesla wants to expand the site by 170 hectares and boost production up to one million vehicles annually to feed Europe’s growing demand for electric cars and take on rivals who are shifting away from combustion engine vehicles.

But the plans have annoyed local residents, who voted against the project in a non-binding ballot last month.

After the vote, Tesla said it might have to rethink the plans. Environmental activists opposed to the expansion of the factory have recently also set up a camp in a wooded area near the plant.

READ ALSO: Why is Tesla’s expansion near Berlin so controversial?

SHOW COMMENTS