The public prosecutor’s office in Gera has dropped its investigation into Björn Höcke, the Thuringia state chairman of the AFD, due to suspicion of denigrating the state. This development was reported by the news portal T-Online, which cited the authorities.
The investigation became possible when the state parliament’s judicial committee revoked the immunity of the AFD politician in July 2024, allowing the prosecutors to proceed with inquiries regarding a speech Höcke gave in Gera on October 3, 2022. The investigative authorities initially believed several lengthy passages from the speech warranted suspicion.
However, the prosecutor’s office subsequently decided not to pursue further charges, according to the news portal. This decision was reached on December 15, 2025. T-Online further reports that following two prior convictions of Höcke by the Halle District Court, the prosecutors concluded that any potential sentence related to the October 3, 2022, speech in Gera would not significantly impact the penalties already imposed in Halle.
Höcke had been convicted in Halle for using the symbols of a constitutionally illegal organization, receiving fines equivalent to 100 and 130 days at a rate of 130 Euros each. Furthermore, another trial against Höcke concerning the charge of public incitement is pending at the Mühlhausen District Court. Separately, charges against Höcke regarding a posting about the stabbing attack in Oggersheim in October 2022 were approved in February 2024, although the court has not yet set a date for the proceedings.
