Evidence tampering
No more arrest warrant against AfD politician Halemba
January 23, 2024, 6:51 p.m
As a first-time elected member of the Bavarian AfD, Daniel Halemba was accused of sedition shortly before his swearing in, and the judiciary is investigating. Now all evidence has been collected, which is why an arrest warrant is no longer necessary.
The Würzburg regional court has revoked the arrest warrant against the Bavarian AfD member of the state parliament Daniel Halemba, which had already been suspended against certain conditions. During the investigation into suspicion of sedition, there is no longer any risk that Halemba could manipulate evidence or influence witnesses, the court said. The evidence has now been sufficiently secured.
Halemba himself rejects the public prosecutor’s allegations. The Würzburg district court had already partially upheld his complaint on January 9th. With regard to the remaining three allegations, the chamber denied that the risk of obscurity as a reason for detention continued to exist. Halemba’s lawyer welcomed the decision. He expects an acquittal in the end.
An arrest warrant had been issued against the young politician Halemba for incitement to hatred and for using the symbols of anti-constitutional organizations. At the end of October – immediately before the first session of the newly elected state parliament – he was temporarily arrested. However, the Würzburg district court decided to suspend the arrest warrant under certain conditions. The new parliamentarian was therefore not taken into custody.
Halemba is also controversial in the AfD. He is accused in the party, among other things, of having cheated in his favor when drawing up the list for the state elections. At a state party conference, a majority called on him to resign from his parliamentary mandate. However, this decision was not binding for Halemba. The AfD parliamentary group in Bavaria subsequently supported him. The 22-year-old remained a member of the Maximilianeum. Halemba is considered a right-winger in the Bavarian AfD; he is assigned to the wing around the Thuringian state leader Björn Höcke, which has now been officially dissolved but still exists as a network.