Germany arrests self-declared ‘king’ and bans his extremist group

A self-declared “king” of Germany and three of his senior “subjects” have been arrested and their group banned for attempting to overthrow the state.

Peter Fitzek, 59, was among those arrested in morning raids across seven states on Tuesday, which involved about 800 security personnel.

The government banned their group, the Reichsbürger, or “citizens of the Reich”, which seeks to establish the Königreich Deutschland, or “Kingdom of Germany”.

Alexander Dobrindt, German’s interior minister, accused the group of attempting to “undermine the rule of law” by creating an alternative state and spreading “antisemitic conspiracy narratives to back up their supposed claim to authority”.

His ministry announced the dissolution of the group, and accused it of financing itself through “economic criminal structures”.

Fitzek, a former chef and karate instructor, calls himself “king” and identified himself to judges as “Peter the First” in a previous court case.

He had himself crowned in 2012 while dressed in ermine robes and brandishing a medieval sword. Since then he has been buying land and property across Germany.

Reichsbürgers have their own currency, flag and ID cards, and want to set up separate banking and health systems.

Fitzek claims to have thousands of followers – or “subjects”.

In an interview with the BBC in 2022 he denied having any violent intentions, but also described the German state as “destructive and sick”.

“I have no interest in being part of this fascist and satanic system,” he told the BBC’s Jenny Hill, when she visited his “kingdom” in eastern Germany.

Fitzek has repeatedly clashed with the authorities and refused to abide by German laws, often in what appears to be in a publicity-seeking manner.

Credit: bbc.com

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