The sole surviving member of the far-right NSU (National Socialist Underground) terrorist organization, which shook Germany, Beate Zschäpe, has applied to the court for early release from prison. The Munich Higher Regional Court (OLG) held a closed-door hearing yesterday regarding Zschäpe's request.

According to information provided by the court spokesperson, during the approximately one-and-a-half-hour hearing, Zschäpe's lawyer Mathias Grasel requested a prison sentence not exceeding a total of 20 years for his client. Grasel asked for this period to be considered together with the time Zschäpe has already served.

Regarding Zschäpe, who was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Munich Higher Regional Court in 2018 for complicity in the NSU murders, the court had also ruled on the "particular gravity of the guilt." This decision means that Zschäpe cannot be automatically released even after 15 years. However, this 15-year minimum prison term, which began with Zschäpe's arrest in November 2011, expires this November. The court is expected to decide in the coming days how much longer Zschäpe must remain in prison.

Zschäpe is serving her sentence at Chemnitz Prison in the state of Saxony and was specially brought to Munich for the hearing. It was also learned last year that she was accepted into a deradicalization program for neo-Nazis.

NSU Terror and Zschäpe’s Role

Beate Zschäpe, a founding member of the NSU terror cell along with Uwe Mundlos and Uwe Böhnhardt, was accused of complicity in 10 murders committed across Germany starting in 2000. Nine of the victims were small business owners of Turkish and Greek origin, and one was a German police officer. The organization also carried out two bomb attacks in Cologne, injuring dozens of people.

While Mundlos and Böhnhardt committed suicide in 2011 to avoid capture, Zschäpe was apprehended, tried, and convicted. The court ruled that Zschäpe was complicit in the crimes as part of the organization, despite there being no direct evidence of her presence at any murder scene. The court is expected to announce its decision regarding Zschäpe's release request in the coming weeks. The decision appears likely to cause a significant stir in Germany.