Highest German Judiciary Court - Last ruling on "NSU 2.0" warning note
The court ruling against the individual behind the so-called "NSU 2.0" threats is valid. The Third Senate of the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) in Karlsruhe revealed this on Monday. They slightly modified the verdict passed down by the Frankfurt District Court and generally rejected the appeal. Originally, the court sentenced the Berlin man to five years and ten months in prison for charges like incitement to hatred, disruption of the peace via threats of crimes, unconstitutional symbol usage, insults, attempted assault, and threats.
It all started in August 2018 when this person sent a wave of hate-filled threats through emails, faxes, and text messages to lawyers, politicians, journalists, and public figures. Among the recipients were satirist Jan Böhmermann, TV host Maybrit Illner, and cabaret artist Idil Baydar.
The threats started with death threats against Frankfurt lawyer Seda Basay-Yildiz and her family. The letters were marked "NSU 2.0" – referencing the right-wing terrorist group National Socialist Underground (NSU). The NSU had perpetrated murders and attacks under this name between 2000 and 2007, killing nine Turkish and Greek-descended small business owners and a policewoman while injuring many more with explosive devices.
BGH Upholds Lone Perpetrator Status
The prosecution demanded seven and a half years in prison. However, the defendant pleaded his defense and requested an acquittal. He claimed he was merely a member of a chat group on the darknet, and the threats discovered on his computer were placed there by others. He steadfastly denied the crimes. His arrest in May 2021 was a result of internet research and linguistic analyses.
The assumption that this man acted alone faced criticism from the beginning. The court struggled to explain how the perpetrator acquired personal data from the victims. For four victims, the defendant's information came from illegally obtained police data during the investigation. Nevertheless, the investigations failed to reveal any ties between him and police circles or connections to possible supporters or accomplices. Eventually, the courts assumed he was the only offender.
The BGH changed the categorization for one case, however. In this situation, the man brandished a loaded pistol at police officers to thwart his arrest. The BGH deemed this differently than the original court, which classified it as an assault on police officers. Since the man didn't physically attack the officers but merely threatened them with violence, the case was reclassified to resistance against execution officers. This alteration didn't influence the prison sentence's duration.
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- Despite the critique, the Regional Court in Hesse assumed that the Berlin man acted alone in sending the hate-filled threats, leading to his prison sentence.
- The defendant's case involved charges such as incitement to hatred, disruption of peace, unconstitutional symbol usage, insults, attempted assault, and threats against various individuals in Germany, including lawyers, politicians, journalists, and public figures in Berlin, Karlsruhe, and other cities.
- The cabaret artist Idil Baydar, satirist Jan Böhmermann, and TV host Maybrit Illner also received death threats as part of this campaign, which carried the label "NSU 2.0," referencing the right-wing terrorist group.
- The Third Senate of the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe upheld the original verdict, with slight modifications, against the individual behind the "NSU 2.0" threats, invalidating the appeal.
- Lawyers, politicians, journalists, and public figures in Germany faced death threats and other forms of intimidation, causing an uproar in the German legal system and triggering a series of processes and investigations.
- While the prosecution demanded a seven-and-a-half-year prison sentence for the perpetrator, defense lawyers argued that the defendant merely participated in a darknet chat group, leading to an ongoing debate on the scope of security measures in Germany.
- Authorities conducted extensive research, including internet investigations and linguistic analyses, leading to the defendant's arrest in May 2021.
- In addition to lawyers and politicians, the right-wing terrorist group NSU had targeted small business owners in Germany, resulting in several murders and attacks between 2000 and 2007.
- The original Frankfurt District Court sentenced the perpetrator to five years and ten months in prison for various crimes, including incitement to hatred, disruption of peace via threats of crimes, and insults.
- Justice officials faced further challenges when the defendant's personal data revealed ties to illegally obtained police data for some of the victims, adding intrigue to the ongoing investigation and court processes.
- The Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe subsequently reviewed the prison sentence of the Berlin man, following various appeals and processes, leading to the validation of the original ruling.
Source: www.stern.de
