Far-right militant jailed for life for police murder

NUREMBERG: A German far-right militant belonging to the shadowy “Citizens of the Reich” movement was sentenced to life in prison yesterday for killing a policeman during a dawn raid on his house. Wolfgang Plan, 50, was convicted by the regional court in the southern city of Nuremberg of murder in a case that sparked a nationwide crackdown on radical right-wing groups. Plan, who referred to himself exclusively in the third person during the trial, smiled as he entered the courtroom wearing a dark suit. He sat impassively as the presiding judge read out the verdict.

He had denied intending to kill the 32-year-old officer during the trial, which started in August, as well as membership of the so-called Reichsbuerger (Citizens of the Reich). The movement includes neo-Nazis, conspiracy theorists and gun enthusiasts who reject the legitimacy of the modern German republic. Plan had told the court through his lawyer that he thought he was under attack when his house was stormed in the “amateurish” raid in October 2016, and had no idea he was firing at police.

One policeman was critically injured and later died of his wounds, while two others were injured in the confrontation in the town of Georgensgmuend. As a result, Plan was also convicted on two counts of attempted murder. His defense attorneys had called for a verdict of manslaughter, with a significantly milder prison sentence. Prosecutors argued Plan, a hunter who once ran a martial arts school, fired 11 shots “with the intention of causing as many deadly injuries as possible”. The raid was aimed at seizing Plan’s arsenal of about 30 weapons after his permits were rescinded following an assessment that he was psychologically “unsound”. He had previously refused to pay taxes and handed in his official identity card.

Reichsbuerger followers generally believe in the continued existence of the pre-war German Reich or empire as it stood under the Nazis, and several groups have declared their own states. They typically deny the authority of police and other state institutions. News agency DPA said Plan had established a pseudo-state on his property, drawing “borders” around it with yellow lines and hanging a sign reading “My word is law here”. Bavaria state interior minister Joachim Herrmann said the court had handed down a “tough sentence that is appropriate for the brutality of the crime”.