Berlin police raid radical Islamists over coronavirus aid fraud
German police on Thursday raided apartments
belonging to several suspected Islamists in Berlin, over allegations they
fraudulently obtained state payouts set up for the coronavirus crisis.
Over 100 police and emergency personnel searched the homes and vehicles of five people "belonging to the Salafist scene", police said in a statement.
Rund 100 Einsatzkräfte, darunter Kolleg. vom #LKA & der #EHu, durchsuchen heute Morgen bei 5 Beschuldigten aus der salafistischen Szene an mehreren Orten stadtweit in #Berlin Wohnungen & Autos wegen des Verdachts des Betruges an #Covid19-Soforthilfen.
^tsm https://t.co/FO6unRChoK
— Polizei Berlin (@polizeiberlin) May 7, 2020
The suspects belonged to the "hard core" of attendees at the Fussilet former Islamist mosque that attained notoriety in Berlin and beyond.
The mosque is believed to have harboured several people classified as dangerous by German authorities, above all Anis Amri.
Tunisian Amri killed 12 in a truck ramming attack against a Berlin Christmas market in December 2016.
Among the five suspects targeted Thursday is a former associate of Amri's and an imam, Berlin's Tagesspiegel daily reported.
The group is believed to have "acquired in a fraudulent manner economic aid offered by the city of Berlin" to cushion the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, prosecutors said.
Sums of between €50,000 and €60,000 were involved, Tagesspiegel reported citing sources close to the probe.
In the depths of the virus crisis, German authorities quickly set up financial transfers to companies, freelancers and the self-employed to keep them afloat.
But the laxer controls have subsequently led to numerous fraud allegations.
A frequent trick by fraudsters was setting up fake websites to apply for the financial aid, aiming to collect real companies' data -- which they would then use for real applications and divert the handouts into their own pockets.
At the beginning of April, North Rhine-Westphalia temporarily halted aid payments after it was discovered that fraudsters were setting up fake websites to trick applicants.
Comments
See Also
Over 100 police and emergency personnel searched the homes and vehicles of five people "belonging to the Salafist scene", police said in a statement.
Rund 100 Einsatzkräfte, darunter Kolleg. vom #LKA & der #EHu, durchsuchen heute Morgen bei 5 Beschuldigten aus der salafistischen Szene an mehreren Orten stadtweit in #Berlin Wohnungen & Autos wegen des Verdachts des Betruges an #Covid19-Soforthilfen.
— Polizei Berlin (@polizeiberlin) May 7, 2020
^tsm https://t.co/FO6unRChoK
The suspects belonged to the "hard core" of attendees at the Fussilet former Islamist mosque that attained notoriety in Berlin and beyond.
The mosque is believed to have harboured several people classified as dangerous by German authorities, above all Anis Amri.
Tunisian Amri killed 12 in a truck ramming attack against a Berlin Christmas market in December 2016.
Among the five suspects targeted Thursday is a former associate of Amri's and an imam, Berlin's Tagesspiegel daily reported.
The group is believed to have "acquired in a fraudulent manner economic aid offered by the city of Berlin" to cushion the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, prosecutors said.
Sums of between €50,000 and €60,000 were involved, Tagesspiegel reported citing sources close to the probe.
In the depths of the virus crisis, German authorities quickly set up financial transfers to companies, freelancers and the self-employed to keep them afloat.
But the laxer controls have subsequently led to numerous fraud allegations.
A frequent trick by fraudsters was setting up fake websites to apply for the financial aid, aiming to collect real companies' data -- which they would then use for real applications and divert the handouts into their own pockets.
At the beginning of April, North Rhine-Westphalia temporarily halted aid payments after it was discovered that fraudsters were setting up fake websites to trick applicants.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.