Officials have issued a statement regarding the incident. - A notable security hazard identified.
The latest issue in a string of occurrences: The Saxony-Anhalt Audit Office has discovered what they consider a "serious security concern" during their examination of the management of weapons at the Police University. They explained, in response to a query, that the primary cause for concern is significant variations in the weapons inventory of the instructional materials collection. "Because this involves both firearms and non-firearms, we view this as a considerable security hazard."
The results were forwarded to the Interior Ministry. "We believe the Interior Ministry, as the responsible oversight body, will take instant measures to clear up the matter, maybe implement preventive actions, and, if required, start criminal processes in its own right." They could not respond to specific queries regarding the weapons due to the ongoing study.
In the previous week, auditors conducted in-person investigations in Aschersleben. The motivation behind this was that evidence was once domiciled at the State Criminal Police Office and then loaned to the Police University. The Interior Ministry, the State Criminal Police Office, and the Police University have not commented on the imperfections or the suggestion that weapons could be absent.
The audits of the Audit Office are not yet finished, said a spokesperson for the Interior Ministry.
Opposition requests special seating
The opposition in the state parliament requested a special meeting of the Interior Committee on Thursday. If weapons actually are absent, there is a significant security risk that needs to be examined immediately, said Henriette Quade (The Left). Interior Minister Tamara Zieschang (CDU) must explain how weapons are stored at the Police University.
The Greens also postulated a special session of the Interior Committee. "I anticipate that the state government will provide swift and comprehensive clarification of these security-related events," said Sebastian Striegel. A special session is necessary. The AfD faction also supported the idea. "The events must be clarified," said the interior policy spokesperson Matthias Büttner.
Additionally, a representative of the black-red-yellow coalition criticized the SPD politician Rüdiger Erben. "Now, clarification must occur via the Interior Ministry and the police, not just through the Audit Office," he told the German Press Agency. As the next regular meeting of the Interior Committee is not until August, Erben also advocated for a timely special session.
In January, the Audit Office revealed major flaws in the evidence storage at the Asservatenverwaltung. Previously acknowledged abnormalities involved violations relating to the comparison weapons collection of the State Criminal Police Office, which is employed for teaching purposes. In recent years, for instance, 274 weapons were not destroyed as commanded by the court. Following the allegations coming to light, an investigation of the comparison weapons collection at the LKA was launched, which is still ongoing.
