After Kippah attack in the Hofgarten Police denies reports about prior investigation of Bonn policeman
Bonn · Media reports since the Kippah attack in Bonn’s Hofgarten have stirred new outrage. In an interview with the General-Anzeiger the police in Bonn outlines their viewpoint.
A media report in connection with the controversial police operation after the attack on a Kippah wearing man in the Hofgarten in Bonn has stirred new outrage over the weekend. Several newspapers had picked up on the fact that one of the involved officers has been investigated internally years ago. In the reports the circumstance that all previous accusations against the officer in question were dropped has been moved entirely to the background.
Based on this, a spokesperson of the Bonn police has said that it can be concluded that the authority „cannot confirm“ the described connection.
Here’s what happened: In 2015, officers of the Bonn riot police were accused of issuing the call „Do you want Total War?“ over private radio units in preparation of the G7 summit in Elmau, a reference to national socialistic minister of Propaganda, Joseph Gobbels. Back then, one of the officers involved in the Hofgarten case has indeed been investigated.
But according to General-Anzeiger information it was clearly stated in the investigation report that he had not been the person who issued that radio phrase, as current reports tried to suggest. A disciplinary action against him was thus closed, the public prosecutor’s office in Munich did not see any punishable action by the officer in question.
Also, according to GA information, the officer in the former case has not been the one who hit the man wearing the Kippah. He was only present during that operation. The connection between both cases was only mentioned in a report between the North Rhine-Westphalian committee on internal affairs and the Federal committee on internal affairs.
As reported, Bonn police officers had wrestled down a Kippah-wearing Professor in the Hofgarten. According to their own statement they mistook him for the perpetrator of a prior violent encounter.
Original text: Rüdiger Franz
Translation: Mareike Graepel
