In the case of the “NSU 2.0” threat series, an investigation was also carried out against a police officer and his colleague. The prosecution has dismissed the procedure.
Received several of the threatening letters from “NSU 2.0”: Seda Başay-Yıldız Photo: private
SEDAN taz | The suspicion is serious: the public prosecutor's office has been investigating Frankfurt police officer Johannes S for years. The suspicion: he was allegedly involved in the series of threats “NSU 2.0”, which were initially directed at NSU victim advocate Seda Başay-Yıldız . since the summer of 2018 and then dozens more affected. Başay-Yıldız's details had already been previously consulted at the police station by Johannes S., a 34-year-old man known for his far-right views. But now the prosecutor's office has stopped the investigation against him.
The procedure had already been suspended in December because sufficient suspicion could not be established, a spokesperson for the Frankfurt/Main public prosecutor's office confirmed to TAZ. He declined to provide further details. However, a complaint has already been filed against the decision, the spokesperson said.
This complaint comes from Başay-Yıldız and his lawyer Antonia von der Behrens. This attitude “is currently not understandable,” von der Behrens said. “The abundance of evidence against Johannes S. only allows me to conclude that he was involved in at least the first threatening letter.”
In fact, there are several points weighing on Johannes S. Johannes S. was on duty at the station during the Başay-Yıldız data recovery on August 2, 2018. The computer was then protected with a password, but all agents The police officers at the station knew it. Shortly after, the first letter from “NSU 2.0” arrived to Başay-Yıldız, which contained the name of his two-year-old daughter, who was two years old at the time, and that she was threatened with death. It was sent via an online fax provider, encrypted using a Tor browser.
Wedding cake with SS uniform
Johannes S. also knew about Tor browsers and gave a lecture about it during his police training. He was also known for his far-right views. Investigators found photographs of him as a young man giving the Hitler salute. In a chat group with colleagues, the “Itiotentreff”, he mocked immigrants and disabled people and posted Nazi photographs. On his wedding cake he appeared stylized in an SS uniform, with the rank of “Obersturmbannführer” on his collar, which is also the name of the writer of “NSU 2.0”. In addition, online searches for “Yildiz in Frankfurt” and movie quotes were found on Johannes S.'s mobile phone, which later also appeared in the “NSU 2.0” letters.
For this reason, the prosecutor's office investigated Johannes S. for incitement to hatred, insults, threats and violation of official secrets. It was not only checked whether he had accessed Başay-Yıldız's data at the station, but also whether he himself was involved in the first threatening letters of the “NSU 2.0” series.
However, according to information from taz, the prosecutor ultimately did not consider this to be verifiable. In fact, an unemployed computer scientist from Berlin, Alexander M., was convicted at the end of 2022 for the “NSU 2.0” series. During the trial, the prosecution had already stated that there was no evidence of accomplices, including Johannes S. During the surveillance measures, nothing was found that could incriminate the police officer. Therefore, in the end the prosecutor did not consider a conviction likely.
A colleague of Johannes S., Miriam D., was also investigated to the end and her case has also been dismissed. The 38-year-old woman was also suspected of being involved in the “NSU 2.0” series because she accessed Başay-Yıldız's data on her PC. In this case too, the prosecutor finally did not see enough suspicion. Until the end it was not possible to clarify who at the station actually made the calls.
Access to files has not been granted
Seda Başay-Yıldız's lawyer, Antonia von der Behrens, criticized not only the suspension of the proceedings, but also the fact that the access requested by Basay-Yildiz to the files had not been granted before this decision. “It is symptomatic of the way in which the prosecution conducts the procedure by not informing the injured party or informing them too late.” The public prosecutor's office will re-examine the complaint against the suspension or submit it to the public prosecutor's office.
Meanwhile, the sedition case remains open against Johannes S. and Miriam D. because of the “Itiotentreff” chat group. The Frankfurt regional court has so far rejected a trial because the chat group was not public, but more publicity is needed for sedition. The prosecutor filed a complaint against this. According to a spokeswoman for the Higher Regional Court in Frankfurt/Main, a decision has not yet been made.
The five officials who participated in the chat group at the time remain suspended, but four of them continue to receive their salaries to this day. Their disciplinary procedures are suspended due to the criminal investigation and will only resume once they are concluded.