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Germany opens probe against Strasbourg attack suspect

German prosecutors have launched an investigation into the suspect in the deadly gun attack at a Christmas market along the French-German border, a spokesman for the service said Thursday.

Published: 13 December 2018 15:43 CET

Germany opens probe against Strasbourg attack suspect

An ambulance near the scene of the attack on Tuesday night. Photo: DPA

Cherif Chekatt, 29, is under investigation for alleged murder, attempted murder and grievous bodily harm, Markus Schmitt, a spokesman for German prosecutors said, confirming a report in the Tagesspiegel daily.

The German probe runs in parallel with the French investigation, Schmitt added.

Chekatt was jailed for burglary in Germany in 2016 but was not deemed a potentially dangerous Islamist, German authorities said Wednesday.

Even though Tuesday evening's attack took place on French soil, several German nationals were present at the site during the assault. They were not wounded but they suffered shock.

SEE ALSO: Strasbourg gunman, previously jailed in Germany, said to have screamed 'Allahu Akbar'

The gunman opened fire at the famed Strasbourg Christmas market, which draws thousands of visitors every year.

Locations in which Chekatt was reportedly scene after the attack in Strasbourg, which is located directly on the German border. Photo: DPA

The attack left three dead and 13 injured, according to the latest toll given by the French authorities.

German police have tightened border checks over fears that the suspect may have crossed over from neighbouring France.

SEE ALSO: Strasbourg suspect: a violent criminal on terror watchlist

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Germany raids properties in bribery probe aimed at AfD politician

The investigation targets Petr Bystron, the number-two candidate for the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in next month’s European Parliament elections, Der Spiegel news outlet reported.

Police, and prosecutors in Munich, confirmed on Thursday they were conducting “a preliminary investigation against a member of the German Bundestag on the initial suspicion of bribery of elected officials and money laundering”, without giving a name.

Properties in Berlin, the southern state of Bavaria and the Spanish island of Mallorca were searched and evidence seized, they said in a statement.

About 70 police officers and 11 prosecutors were involved in the searches.

Last month, Bystron denied media reports that he was paid to spread pro-Russian views on a Moscow-financed news website, just one of several scandals that the extreme-right anti-immigration AfD is battling.

READ ALSO: How spying scandal has rocked troubled German far-right party

Bystron’s offices in the German parliament, the Bundestag, were searched after lawmakers voted to waive the immunity usually granted to MPs, his party said.

The allegations against Bystron surfaced in March when the Czech government revealed it had bust a Moscow-financed network that was using the Prague-based Voice of Europe news site to spread Russian propaganda across Europe.

Did AfD politicians receive Russian money?

Czech daily Denik N said some European politicians cooperating with the news site were paid from Russian funds, in some cases to fund their European Parliament election campaigns.

It singled out the AfD as being involved.

Denik N and Der Spiegel named Bystron and Maximilian Krah, the AfD’s top candidate for the European elections, as suspects in the case.

After the allegations emerged, Bystron said that he had “not accepted any money to advocate pro-Russian positions”.

Krah has denied receiving money for being interviewed by the site.

On Wednesday, the European Union agreed to impose a broadcast ban on the Voice of Europe, diplomats said.

The AfD’s popularity surged last year, when it capitalised on discontent in Germany at rising immigration and a weak economy, but it has dropped back in the face of recent scandals.

As well as the Russian propaganda allegations, the party has faced a Chinese spying controversy and accusations that it discussed the idea of mass deportations with extremists, prompting a wave of protests across Germany.

READ ALSO: Germany, Czech Republic accuse Russia of cyberattacks

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