The German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) is investigating several hundred possible war crimes by Russians in Ukraine, chairman Holger Münch reported in the German newspaper world on Sunday† According to Münch, the criminal investigation department is specifically looking for the military and political leaders of these crimes and not just for the actual perpetrators themselves.
“We have already received hundreds of indications in this direction so far,” said the BKA chairman. “This is the most difficult part of our research. It is a complex puzzle piece.”
According to Münch, the aim of the BKA is to “identify those responsible for the atrocities, prove their actions through the investigation and bring them to justice”. The latter should be done in Germany itself, among other things, on the basis of universal jurisdiction. This makes it possible to try certain crimes no matter where in the world they were committed.
The BKA is assisted in its investigation by the German intelligence services (BND). For example, they recorded radio conversations of Russian soldiers in which they spoke candidly about the atrocities against civilians.
Münch emphasizes that the investigation may take some time, because many investigations into the war in Ukraine are still in the early stages. Germany also wants to send detectives to Ukraine, but this requires international mandates.
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