Overview
- Berlin’s prosecution service announced the new Telum unit on February 24 and assigned several experienced organized-crime prosecutors while expanding its specialized division.
- Telum will handle only cases generated by the police task force BAO Ferrum and will coordinate closely with investigators.
- BAO Ferrum, created last autumn, has conducted extensive raids and checks, leading to thousands of identity and venue controls and the seizure of dozens of weapons.
- Recent attacks have largely hit merchants of Turkish origin, with suspects reported as Turkish and Kurdish organized-crime actors and motives under investigation such as protection rackets and turf disputes.
- Senior officials diverge on the scale of the threat, as the police president rejects talk of a citywide gang war and the justice senator describes a new risk that includes offenders traveling from abroad to intimidate business owners.