Saxony: ‘last generation’ climate activists raided after ‘Sistine Madonna’ sticker attack

After the “Sistine Madonna” sticker attack: raids in three federal states

In August, two “last generation” climate protesters affixed themselves to the Sistine Madonna in Dresden. Now the police in Saxony, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Berlin searched apartments.

Leipzig / Dresden. In August they have each other Adherent to the world famous Sistine Madonna in DresdenPolice are now searching the apartments of climate activists Mike Grunst (22), Jakob Baer (29) and 22-year-old Henning Jeske on behalf of the public prosecutor in Dresden.

As the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Office of the Criminal Police of the State of Saxony jointly announced, several objects were searched in Leipzig, Berlin and Greifswald in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern on Thursday. The suspects have not been identified at any of the sites. According to the Last Generation coalition, 29-year-old Jakob Baer is currently in protective custody in Bavaria.

The authorities said the searches were carried out on the basis of judicial decisions issued by the Dresden District Court. The Public Prosecutor’s Office is currently investigating the three young men on suspicion of damaging property.

“During the search procedures, evidence can be secured in the form of data carriers and means of communication, the evaluation of which should serve to further classify and evaluate the facts,” the Dresden Public Prosecutor’s Office and the LKA said in the afternoon.

According to the company, more than 60 officers participated in the operation. The forces of the State Criminal Police Office were supported by officers from the Saxony riot police and troops from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Berlin.

According to reporters, one of the searches took place in the Rosa-Luxemburg-Straße district, east of Leipzig. A number of officers – also in civilian clothes – searched the apartment and spoke to different people. Everything ran smoothly. Another raid was spotted in the city center of Leipzig.

Glue attack: €4,000 damage to “Sistine Madonna”

Mike Grunst and Jacob Baer have been accused of using super glue to stick their hands to the frame of the “Sistine Madonna” painting in Dresden on August 23, causing around 4,000 euros in damages.

Co-accused Henning Jeschke is said to have handed them a sign with the inscription “Last Generation”, which the two then carried in front of them. Jeschke reportedly posted the procedure on social networks. At the time, state art groups mentioned it The damage could reach 12,000 euros.

In the event of a criminal trial, the court could sentence the three defendants to a fine or up to three years in prison for damage to property.

Investigations are currently underway, and will take some time, according to the Prosecutor General’s Office and the LKA, particularly due to the “complex assessment necessary for secured data carriers”.

The “last generation” does not want to stop protesting

At the request of Sächsische.de, a spokeswoman for the Last Generation activist group announced Thursday morning that several apartments had been searched. “Police were at the door of Mike Grunst, Jacob Baer and – not involved – Henning Jeske (not in Leipzig) Thursday morning,” the spokeswoman said.

It also confirms that only the officers had access to Jacob Baer’s apartment, although he himself is in protective custody in Munich. According to the organization, he was there because he “never stopped warning.”

The spokeswoman continues: “We don’t know in the current view if anything was confiscated, and if so, what. The crucial question, however, is not what these three have at home, but how we live beyond planetary boundaries.” You won’t stop asking the “vital questions”.

CDU: “Self-Certified Moral Superiority Is Not a Carte blanche”

The first reactions to the raids in connection with the climate protest in the Dresden Museum also come from Saxon politics. Alexander Dirks, general secretary of the CDU, said: “The destruction of artistic treasures is not a legitimate protest, but a criminal offence. If everyone did this, our coexistence and our democracy would be seriously questioned. Self-established moral superiority is not a license.”

Further: “I therefore expect a clear condemnation of this form of activity from all democratic parties. There are still many who remain silent and ultimately legitimize this activity which claims itself and is punished for it.” According to him, the “last generations” are damaging the important concern for climate protection with actions such as sticking it to a painting.

Protest at the Sächsische Staatskapelle concert in Hamburg

And on Wednesday evening, two climate demonstrators from the “last generation” did another at Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie. Shortly before the start of a concert by the Saxon Staatskapelle, the two demonstrators attached themselves to the conductor’s desk.

In a video posted by the group on Twitter, a woman and a man, each wearing a safety vest, are seen standing on stage on stage and speaking to the audience. Activists called for resistance to what they saw as the government’s indecisive climate policy.

A police spokesman said, in response to a question from the German News Agency, that two activists attached themselves to a fence in the Great Hall using a high-quality adhesive shortly after 8:00 pm on Wednesday evening. The two were released from the fence after a short while and taken into custody.

“Just as there is only one violin concerto by Beethoven, we only have this one planet whose borders we ignore so much that climate-related disasters are becoming more frequent and deadlier,” one of the activists said in a video clip posted by “Last Generation” on Twitter. And: “There will be no more Elbphilharmonie to enjoy Beethoven when Hamburg is under water.” (with dpa)