A celebrity gourmet chef whose daughter is the girlfriend of Real Madrid footballer David Alaba and a former police officer who was once tasked with protecting Jewish communities from terrorist attacks are among the latest figures to be linked to the plan of failed Reichsbürger coup in Germany. More arrests are expected as investigations continue.
Details emerging from the biggest national police operation against right-wing extremism suggest the suspects may have been tipped off before the raids, in which 3,000 police officers raided more than 150 addresses across Germany, and in Austria and Italy, with 25 arrests.
The number of suspects had risen to 54 on Friday, with more arrests expected. Weapons were found in more than 50 locations, including rifles and ammunition, according to the Federal Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
The group, inspired by the Reichsbürger’s ideology that the modern German state is illegitimate, had planned to storm the Reichstag building and arrest parliamentarians before overthrowing the government and installing a regime led by a 71-year-old aristocrat as head of state.
Frank Heppner, a star chef from Munich, who was arrested on Wednesday at a five-star hotel in the Austrian ski resort of Kitzbühel where he worked, was allegedly a member of the command staff of the terrorist group’s military arm, responsible for recruiting new members, obtaining weapons and other equipment, as well as creating a fail-safe IT and communication structure. He was also in charge of running the canteen that would have provided meals to the members of the so-called “New German Army”.
Austrian newspaper Die Presse, citing investigators, said Heppner, 62, was also to be the personal chef of Henry XIII, Prince of Reuß, after he was installed as king. He said Heppner provided the group with money, kitchen utensils, a camper van and an emergency generator.
Heppner’s 28-year-old daughter Shalimar is in a relationship with Alaba, a professional soccer player who plays for Real Madrid and captains the Austrian national team. The couple have a son who was born in 2019. Alaba did not respond to requests for comment, according to German media that tried to contact him.
Among others suspected of being part of the group was a former police officer who was once tasked with protecting Jewish communities from terrorist attacks. Michael Fritsch was arrested with his partner, Melanie Ritter, near Hanover in northern Germany.
Fritsch, 58, was suspended from his duties in 2020 and later fired, after he appeared at protests organized by Covid-negatives. He later became a parliamentary candidate for DieBasis, the political party of the Covid-denying Querdenker movement. His legal appeal process against his dismissal is still pending.
The far-right Alternative für Deutschland continued to try to distance itself on Friday from its former member, Birgit Malsack-Winkemann, a sitting judge who was arrested at her home in west Berlin on Wednesday morning for allegedly one of the key conspirators. His role after the coup was to be Minister of Justice.
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There were widespread calls for a review of access to the Reichstag. Malsack-Winkemann, who as a former MP was entitled to access the Parliament building, had allegedly provided the group’s military arm with important logistical information on how to enter.
“Renewed control of access to the Bundestag by former AfD MPs is a necessity after the revelations around Malsack-Winkemann,” said Konstantin Kuhle, the deputy parliamentary leader of the pro-business liberals. and urged security forces to ban anyone they consider. a potential security risk.
To what extent the group had the ability to turn their power fantasies into reality remains a hotly debated topic. According to Der Spiegel magazine, among the items seized in the raids were 9mm pistols, swords, knives, stun guns, combat helmets, night vision equipment and the service weapons of a policeman and a policewoman who were among the suspects
Left-wing newspaper Die Tageszeitung reported that investigators found a “hit list” with 18 names and addresses of prominent German politicians and journalists the group may have wanted to target. Among them was Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, along with six other members of the Bundestag and three TV presenters from public television.