Germany launches trial of former Baader-Meinhof gang member

A German court has opened the trial of a former member of the notorious far-left Red Army Faction (RAF) who was arrested last year after being found living quietly in Berlin.

Now 66, Daniela Klette was brought to the court near Hanover in northern Germany on Tuesday on charges of attempted murder, illegal possession of firearms and aggravated robbery.

She is accused of committing the offences alongside accomplices Ernst-Volker Staub and Burkhard Garweg, who were also part of the “third generation” of the group, also known as the Baader-Meinhof gang.

Largely active in the 1970s and 80s, the RAF was responsible for the deaths of at least 30 people. By 1998, the group had disbanded.

However, the trio is alleged to have committed violent robberies to fund their lives on the run. They are accused of stealing a total of 2.7 million euros ($2.9m) between 1999 and 2016.

Police are still searching for Staub and Garweg, who would be aged 56 and 71, respectively, if they are still alive.

Klette is reported to have acted mainly as a getaway driver. However, she also carried a “realistic looking” dummy bazooka during the heists and faces a charge of attempted murder stemming from one robbery in 2015.

Prosecutors opening the trial said the three suspects had “proceeded in an extremely conspiratorial manner”, renting cars and apartments under false names and sometimes setting fire to vehicles to cover their tracks.

A spokesperson for the German court told the Reuters news agency that Klette potentially faces life in prison.