German Court Jails Man Who Put Angela Merkel and Olaf Scholz on Darknet 'Death Lists' of Politicians
A German court has sentenced 50-year-old Martin S. to three years in prison for operating a far-right darknet site called 'Assassination Politics' He confessed to posting online 'death sentences' and targeting politicians, including former chancellors Angela Merkel and Olaf Scholz. He was also convicted of soliciting crypto bounties.
A German regional court on Friday, June 19, sentenced a 50-year-old man to three years in prison for operating a darknet platform that issued online "death sentences" and called for the killings of prominent national politicians. The targets of the digital hit list reportedly included former German Chancellors Angela Merkel and Olaf Scholz. The defendant, a German-Polish national identified under local privacy laws as Martin S., confessed during his trial in the western city of Duesseldorf to managing the anonymous darknet portal, which he named "Assassination Politics".
Convictions for Terrorism Financing and Explosives Instruction
A Duesseldorf court spokeswoman confirmed that Martin S. was convicted on multiple accounts, including terrorist financing, providing instructions on committing terrorist acts, and detailing the manufacturing of explosive devices, such as Molotov cocktails. Germany Shocker: 15-Year-Old Boy Pushed to Death From High-Rise Building in Hamburg by Group; 4 Syrian Men and 1 Iraqi Woman Detained.
According to judicial authorities, the defendant used the platform to publish lists of public figures under stylised "criminal files". He then pronounced arbitrary "death sentences" against these individuals, accusing them of offences like "high treason". The court's press office stated that the operator holds deep-seated "far-right views."
Cryptocurrency Bounties and Darknet Target Profiles
The investigation revealed that Martin S. acted alone in the maintenance of the infrastructure but maintained active ideological ties to a broader right-wing conspiracy theorist network. In addition to targeting top-tier government figures like Merkel and Scholz, the website hosted sensitive personal data belonging to multiple potential victims. Prosecutors established that the defendant systematically solicited cryptocurrency donations intended to serve as financial "bounties" to incentivise the targeted killings. However, the court noted that no such digital currency donations were actually processed or received during the platform's operational window. Germany Shocker: 43-Year-Old Man in Paderborn City Reports Himself to Police for Killing Someone.
Institutional Backlash Against Far-Right Networks
The prosecution had initially sought a harsher five-year custodial sentence, while the legal defence team argued for a full acquittal. Friday's verdict remains provisional and is subject to the standard judicial appeals process. The sentencing comes amid an ongoing crackdown by German security services on domestic extremism. In recent years, federal authorities have dismantled several far-right and conspiracy-driven networks accused of plotting against democratic institutions. Notably, in 2022, German police arrested members of a suspected coup group - including a former member of parliament and ex-military personnel - who allegedly plotted to storm parliament, overthrow the federal government, and install an aristocrat as head of state.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 19, 2026 10:26 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
