The Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof) has dismissed the appeals filed by four defendants associated with the so-called “Kaiserreichsgruppe”. This ruling was announced by the court in Karlsruhe on Monday.
The four individuals were convicted before the Regional Court of Koblenz (Oberlandesgericht Koblenz) of founding a terrorist association and committing various other crimes. Their penalties ranged from imprisonment terms between two years and ten months, as well as an eight-year sentence.
According to the court’s judgment, the defendants belong to the “Reichsbürger” movement, a group that rejects the constitution and state order of the Federal Republic of Germany. They had planned to violently overthrow the existing government to establish a new administration modeled on the Imperial Constitution of 1871. Their supposed coup was set for May 2022 and allegedly involved actions such as the removal of the federal government and the kidnapping of the then-Federal Minister of Health.
The appeals review conducted by the BGH’s 3rd Criminal Senate found no legal errors that would benefit the defendants. With this decision, the original judgment is now legally final.
