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German police carry out raids in Berlin and Brandenburg

Timothy Jones
August 17, 2020

Some 400 police officers have been searching locations in raids targeting the illegal arms trade and drug dealers. Both state and federal police were involved.

https://p.dw.com/p/3h4FB
German police officers from a special operations unit
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Becker

German state and federal police on Monday raided apartments and business premises in several Berlin districts and in the surrounding state of Brandenburg in a crackdown on criminal gangs, German media reported.

A police spokesman said that the operation targeted serious robbery in the rocker scene, as well as the illegal arms and drugs trades.

The raids were backed by Germany's elite GSG 9 federal police tactical unit, according to the daily regional paper B.Z..

The operations took place in the Berlin districts of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, Neukölln, Pankow, Reinickendorf and Spandau, with one location also searched in Bradenburg.

Read more: German police launch raids in Russia money laundering probe 

Crackdown on clans

On Saturday evening, police raids on alleged "clan criminality" were carried out in 10 cities in Germany's most populous state, North Rhine-Westphalia. The industrial city of Essen was identified as a particular hub for clan activity.

Some 14,000 crimes over three years have been attributed by police to 104 clans comprising 6,500 suspects in the region.