Police Conduct Searches in Berlin Linked to Former RAF Members

Wed 14th May, 2025

In a significant law enforcement operation, police have conducted searches of multiple properties in Berlin as part of an ongoing investigation into two former members of the Red Army Faction (RAF), Ernst-Volker Staub and Burkhard Garweg. The operation targeted several locations across the city, including neighborhoods such as Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, Schöneberg, Reinickendorf, and Westend.

The authorities are reportedly investigating a 38-year-old woman suspected of providing assistance to the fugitives. Although no arrest warrant has been issued against her at this time, the police are treating her as a key figure in the case. During the searches, officers seized various electronic devices, including mobile phones and laptops, which will now undergo thorough examination.

Staub and Garweg are wanted for their alleged involvement in a series of violent crimes, including terrorism and armed robberies. The RAF, a notorious leftist militant group, was responsible for numerous acts of violence in Germany over several decades before officially disbanding in 1998. Their criminal activities included the murders of prominent figures such as Alfred Herrhausen, the then CEO of Deutsche Bank, in 1989, and Detlev Karsten Rohwedder, head of the Treuhandanstalt, in 1991.

Both men are currently subject to outstanding arrest warrants based on suspicions of participation in terrorist activities. Additionally, they are implicated in a string of robberies across various German states, including Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, and Schleswig-Holstein, where they reportedly targeted cash transports and supermarkets between 1999 and 2016.

The police continue to pursue leads in this high-profile case, as the search for Staub and Garweg remains ongoing. Their connections to past RAF activities have drawn considerable attention, as authorities remain vigilant against any resurgence of left-wing extremism in Germany.


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