The second status report on “right-wing extremists in the security authorities” is here: Within three years, 327 employees of the security authorities of the federal and state governments (including customs, BKA, federal police) were noticed who had connections to right-wing extremism or to the scene of the so-called Reich citizens and have self-government.

The investigation, which the Federal Ministry of the Interior published on Friday, covers the period from July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2021. Among the conspicuous employees, it was observed, for example, participation in extremist events, contacts with extremist parties or “Heil Hitler” shouts.

Even if some actors were active in chat groups in which right-wing extremist content was shared, the report provides no evidence of a national network of extremists from different security agencies. However, what the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, who compiled the information, noticed were the numerous connections between employees classified as right-wing extremists and extremist actors and parties, as well as organizations in the hooligan and martial arts scene, which are attributed to “subcultural right-wing extremism”.

According to the information, the activities of a total of 860 employees were observed during the survey period. According to the report, 38 percent of the evaluated cases met the requirements for further intelligence processing.

83 right-wing extremists were identified in the business area of ​​the military counter-intelligence service, which includes around 242,000 soldiers of the Bundeswehr and civilian employees. 18 right-wing extremists were noticed in the Federal Police, which currently has more than 54,000 employees.

According to the report, there were four right-wing extremist employees at customs, two at the Federal Criminal Police Office, and one employee each at the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, the Federal Intelligence Service and the Bundestag police.

In addition, there are a total of 30 suspected cases and proven cases of extremism by employees of the federal security authorities who are attributed to the “Reich citizens” and self-government scene. The so-called Reichsbürger and Selbstverwalter doubt the legitimacy of the Federal Republic of Germany. They often refuse to pay taxes. The security authorities recently attributed around 19,000 people to the scene.

In the past electoral period, the parliamentary control committee of the Bundestag had also dealt intensively with right-wing extremists in the security authorities. The starting point was the case of the Bundeswehr officer Franco A. The federal prosecutor’s office accuses him of having planned attacks on politicians.

Franco A. had acquired a false identity as a Syrian refugee – from the point of view of the prosecutors, in order to direct suspicion to refugees after an attack and thus to shake confidence in asylum policy. A. was arrested at Vienna Airport in 2017 when he wanted to get a loaded pistol from a hiding place in an airport toilet. It is not yet known what he planned to do with the weapon. The trial against him is not yet over.

According to the report, 179 cases where right-wing extremism was suspected were investigated in the most populous state of North Rhine-Westphalia in the period under review. In Berlin there were 74 cases. Hessen was in third place with 60 verified facts. In Bavaria there were 38. In Saxony there were 26 test, suspected and proven cases of right-wing extremism.

However, these figures not only reflect the extent of the phenomenon in the security authorities of the respective federal state, but also the local awareness of the problem. In other words: where superiors tend to look the other way or play down right-wing extremist incidents, there are automatically fewer suspected cases.