In 2019, three comrades were arrested while sitting on a park bench late at night in Hamburg[1], accused of carrying incendiary devices[2] and planning to burn down a specific building whose address was written on a piece of paper found on them. Two of the arrested comrades had been followed by cops for several hours before their arrest.
In a 2020 trial, the comrades were sentenced to between 19 and 22 months in prison[3]. The sentences were upheld on appeal in 2022[4].
Techniques used
| Name | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| Mass surveillance | ||
| Video surveillance | On the evening leading up to the arrests, one of the comrades — while being followed by cops — stopped at a gas station and was seen by the station's video surveillance cameras buying gas and filling a gas can[1]. The cops got the CCTV footage the next morning. | |
| Physical surveillance | ||
| Mobile | During the evening leading up to the arrests, two of the comrades rode their bikes through the city and were followed by cops on bikes (and presumably also cops in cars) until they were arrested in the park[1]. The cops decided to follow the comrades specifically that evening because it was exactly two years since the G20 summit in Hamburg and the comrades were suspected of planning an action for the anniversary of the summit. The surveillance of one of the accused had started in March 2018. | |