Right-wing extremist suspected of killing German official
A German man with extreme right-wing views is the suspect police arrested over the weekend as the suspect in the killing of a regional official who supported Chancellor Angela Merkel's welcoming stance toward refugees, prosecutors said Monday.
The 45-year-old suspect, identified only as Stephan E. in line with privacy laws, is accused of killing Walter Luebcke, 65, with a pistol shot to the head this month, Markus Schmitt, a spokesman for Germany's federal prosecutor's office, said.
"We believe that the crime was motivated by right-wing extremism," Schmitt told reporters in Karlsruhe.
Investigators came to that conclusion based upon the suspect's public statements, he said. At the moment, there are no indications Stephan E. was a member of any right-wing terrorist organization, Schmitt said.
