Bavarian AfD lawmaker Halemba faces accusations of stirring up the public.
Halemba has been part of the Bavarian state parliament since October 2023. Her immunity was removed twice: once in October and again in April, to pave the way for investigations and charges. These charges were presented at the youth court of the Würzburg District Court, responsible for determining if the main proceedings should begin due to Halemba being under the age of 20 at the time of the alleged crimes.
Halemba is being charged with several offenses. Firstly, she is accused of playing a song by the right-wing rock band Landser at her birthday party in July 2022. The authorities considered the song's content offensive and inciting hatred against Turkey's population living in Germany.
Secondly, she is accused of displaying symbolism from unconstitutional and terrorist organizations. Halemba allegedly hung a signed order from 1939 by SS leader Heinrich Himmler in her room at a student fraternity in Würzburg, visible to everyone who visited.
Thirdly, she is being investigated for money laundering, as she's said to have transferred funds from other fraud offenses to an account in the Baltic region in July 2022, receiving a commission in return.
Fourthly, there are accusations of attempted extortion and property damage against Halemba. She is alleged to have harassed a lawyer last year to influence a procedure against a third person. The lawyer's office's entrance door was also damaged by her.
Fifthly, charges of threatening behavior were laid against her while the investigation was underway in Würzburg in October.
While it couldn't be confirmed that the AfD politician was implicated in a "Sieg Heil" inscription in the Burschenschaft Prager Teutonia's Würzburg guest book, the related investigation was discontinued.
Apart from Halemba, another fraternity member was indicted. The charges against defendant D. relate to the two extortion offenses. Both accused have "mostly specifically denied" the allegations.
Halemba got elected to the Bavarian state parliament after the October 8 election. She missed the opening session of the new parliament due to a warrant being issued for her arrest. The warrant was later dropped, and Halemba, who was also the chairman of the AfD district association in Würzburg, resigned from her party roles thereafter. The AfD's federal executive board petitioned for an expulsion procedure against Halemba in May. The decision on whether or not to initiate and execute this procedure falls under Bavaria's party disciplinary court.
Besides Halemba, four other suspects were also the focus of the investigation. Proceedings were dropped against two of them due to a lack of sufficient evidence. In another case, the proceedings were discontinued due to the expected sentencing in another case. A judgment pertaining to illegal weapons possession has already been given against the fourth person by the Würzburg District Court.
Read also:
- The public prosecutor's office in Würzburg is currently investigating allegations of money laundering against AfD MP Daniel Halemba, involving funds transferred to a Baltic account in July 2022.
- Following the removal of her parliamentary immunity, the youth court of the Würzburg District Court decided to proceed with the main proceedings against Halemba due to charges of incitement to hatred and damage to property.
- In addition to these charges, the local court in Würzburg is also examining Halemba's alleged involvement in attempts at extortion and displaying symbolism from unconstitutional organizations.
- A fellow fraternity member, defendant D., was also indicted for two extortion offenses related to the case, with both accused denying the allegations.
- Apart from Halemba, the public prosecutor's office in Würzburg is also investigating four other individuals in connection with the case, with two having their proceedings dropped due to insufficient evidence and another facing sentencing for illegal weapons possession.
- Despite accusations of playing a controversial song and hanging a signed order by SS leader Heinrich Himmler at her room, the indictment against Halemba for "Sieg Heil" inscriptions in a guestbook was discontinued due to lack of evidence.
