Six police officers under investigation for chats with racist and discriminatory content will be fired during their probation period. Lower Saxony shares that Ministry of Internal Affairs based on request. Five other police officers had their probation periods extended. Eight civil servants were prohibited from carrying out official business or were temporarily suspended from their duties.
The members knew each other from the police academy
In a November 2019 chat, the men were said to have spread racist content that belittled Nazi power, as well as discriminatory and obscene content. Ableism is a term used to describe discrimination against people with disabilities. Civil service law and civil service investigations are ongoing. Such statements are prohibited by law under criminal law.
In total, the chat has 13 members who know each other from the Lower Saxony Police Academy in Oldenburg. Nine of them were searched. No search warrants were issued against the other four people – in part because any of those involved had not even passed exams at the academy. Another person has been acquitted in another criminal case.
Second case: File evaluation continues
In a second case involving a chat group with racist and discriminatory images, investigations into several police officers are also ongoing. In late September there were searches of two women and five men who worked at the Hanover Police Department, the Central Police Directorate, the State Criminal Police Office and the Police Academy.
Here too, according to the Ministry of Home Affairs, a total of 24 chat members knew each other from the police academy. The chat group was created there more than ten years ago as a study group – initially to clarify organizational questions. However, along the way, racist images belittling the Nazi government and discriminatory images were also sent.
The Minister sees no structural racism in the police
“Evaluation of the confiscated files is ongoing,” the ministry said. As soon as this is completed, a legal assessment of the service will be carried out. Its content is prohibited by law under criminal law.
Interior Minister Daniela Behrens (SPD) stressed in September that “people with such attitudes in POLICE “Lower Saxony has no place”. However, there is no evidence of structural racism in the state police force. More than 24,000 employees work every day for security and democracy.
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