The initiator of the "lateral thinking" protests has been in custody for weeks on suspicion of fraud and money laundering. His lawyers want him to be released soon. However, a court needs more time to make a decision.
Stuttgart (dpa / lsw) - The initiator of the "lateral thinking" movement, Michael Ballweg, remains in prison for the time being. At a detention review date on Monday, an investigating judge did not make a decision about further detention, as the lawyer Alexander Christ announced on Monday evening in Stuttgart. According to the information, the Stuttgart district court is now to decide within a week whether the 47-year-old will be held in custody. The court could not be reached for comment later in the evening.
Ballweg's lawyers had applied for the detention review because they did not consider the suspicions presented in the investigation file to be covered, as announced by lawyer Christ, who took over media work within a team of lawyers.
The public prosecutor's office in Stuttgart is investigating Ballweg for fraud and money laundering. He has been in custody since June 29 because of the risk of absconding. According to the authorities, a search at the end of June revealed concrete evidence that Ballweg wanted to sell his assets abroad. According to information from judicial circles, there is a suspicion of fraud in the amount of around 640,000 euros and money laundering in the amount of around 430,000 euros.
According to Ballweg's lawyers, the appointment on Monday should check whether the urgent suspicion and the risk of absconding still exist. The lawyers had shown confidence in advance that Ballweg would be released after the detention check.
According to Christ, the investigation files show that Ballweg is said to have used financial donations for himself. These were received in different accounts. In order to be able to spend money with it, there have been various transfers. From this, the public prosecutor's office derived the accusation of money laundering, explained Christ. The lawyers of the "lateral thinking" initiator therefore do not follow this argument.
According to the police, around several hundred supporters of the "lateral thinking" movement gathered in front of the prison in Stuttgart-Stammheim during the afternoon to demand Ballweg's release.
The "lateral thinking" movement was formed in many German cities from Stuttgart in the course of the corona pandemic. The supporters repeatedly demonstrate publicly against the political measures to contain the virus. She is observed by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution because of anti-constitutional views, conspiracy ideologies and anti-Semitic tendencies.
