German cops arrest five for forming right-wing terror group, attacking refugees

Berlin: Five people were arrested in Germany on Tuesday on suspicion of founding a right-wing terror group to attack refugee homes and other facilities, prosecutors said. Federal prosecutors said that the “Freital Group,” named after a suburb of the eastern city of Dresden that has seen a string of anti-refugee protests and other incidents, was formed in July 2015 or earlier. [caption id=“attachment_2737212” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters[/caption] They said several apartments in the state of Saxony were searched alongside the arrests of the five German nationals four men and a woman aged between 18 and 39. The group acquired more than 100 firecrackers of various types from the Czech Republic, prosecutors said in a statement. They said members are believed to have carried out three attacks in September and October — two on refugee homes in Freital and the other on a left-wing housing project in Dresden in which windows were blown out and one asylum-seeker suffered cuts to the face. Prosecutors are looking into whether they were behind any further attacks. The suspects were identified only as Justin S, Rico K, Maria K, Sebastian W and Mike S in line with German privacy rules. As well as membership in a terrorist organization, they are also suspected of offenses including attempted murder, bodily harm and bringing about explosions. Three other men including the group’s two alleged leaders are suspected of co-founding the “Freital Group” and are already in custody on suspicion of causing an explosion. Germany saw a surge in far-right attacks over the past year amid a huge influx of refugees and other migrants.