Twenty-nine police officers in Germany were suspended on Wednesday over neo-Nazi images shared in messaging apps.
Officials discovered pictures of swastikas, Adolf Hitler, and renderings of refugees inside gas chambers, the Washington Post reported. More than 200 officers conducted early morning raids against 34 homes and offices as part of the investigation.
Of the officers suspended, 25 worked for the same department in the western city of Essen. At least 14 officers are expected to be fired for sharing the images, more than 100 of which were distributed in five WhatsApp groups used largely or entirely by law enforcement officers.
North Rhine-Westphalia’s Interior Minister Herbert Reul said the discovery was a “disgrace” for the region.
“We are talking about the nastiest and most disgusting neo-Nazi, racist, and refugee-hostile hatred,” Reul said.
Some of the suspects face criminal charges of spreading Nazi propaganda and hate speech, according to the BBC.
Frank Richter, Essen’s police chief, said that he was “appalled and ashamed” by the news and that it was “hard to find words.”
