Neuss (dpa / lnw) - The AfD MEP Gunnar Beck has to go to court in Neuss today (12 p.m.) on suspicion of misusing titles. The district court had previously issued a penalty order in the amount of 15,000 euros against the 56-year-old, but his defense attorney had lodged an objection.
The Düsseldorf public prosecutor's office launched investigations against Beck in 2019 after doubts arose about the politician's professorship. Beck had rejected the allegations: he had been working as a university teacher in Great Britain for many years. According to the indictment, he is listed there as a "reader" - that is, as a lecturer.
According to the public prosecutor, he is said to have introduced himself as a "professor" at a meeting of the AfD in Magdeburg in November 2018, without being so under German law. The law provides for a fine or imprisonment of up to one year for the misuse of titles.
