Steffen Krach: Hanover public prosecutor's office requests waiver of immunity

The investigations against the state and parliamentary group leader of the Berlin SPD, Steffen Krach, which have been interrupted in the meantime, are to be continued according to the wishes of the Hanover public prosecutor's office. As the RBB and the dpa news agency unanimously report, the authority requested that Krach's immunity be lifted. A corresponding application was received in Berlin on Wednesday. When and how Parliament would deal with the request remained unclear.

The investigations into Krach have been on hold since the constitutive session of the House of Representatives on October 29th. The Berlin parliament has generally approved investigations against its members in advance. Before such a procedure is initiated, the President of Parliament must be informed. In the Krach case, however, the investigations began before his mandate began. According to Eisenhauer, the public prosecutor's office therefore considers a separate waiver of immunity to be necessary.

The investigation concerns the bidding process for the sale of a clinic site in Lehrte near Hanover. Confidential information about a competing offer is said to have been passed on to a bidder. Krach was president of the Hanover region at the time. There are allegations against him, among other things, of violating trade secrets and accepting benefits. Krach rejects the allegations.

Investigations continue against the former Lower Saxony SPD parliamentary group leader Stefan Politze, the SPD member of the Bundestag Adis Ahmetović and an entrepreneur. Politze and Ahmetović also rejected the allegations. The presumption of innocence applies to all accused.