Sentencing of Former Red Army Faction Member
A district court in Germany has handed down a 13-year prison sentence to 67-year-old Daniela Klett, previously a member of the far-left group known as the Red Army Faction (RAF). This ruling stems from her involvement in a series of armed robberies during the years she evaded capture.
Klett, who had been dubbed “Germany’s most wanted woman,” spent three decades living as a fugitive due to her past with the RAF, a violent organization responsible for numerous deaths and injuries before it dissolved in 1998. She was finally apprehended in Berlin on February 26, 2024, after being discovered living under a false identity. Her trial, which began in March 2025, lasted almost a year before concluding with her conviction.
German authorities have linked Klett to a number of armed robberies targeting cash transport vehicles and supermarkets across Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia from 1999 to 2016, following the RAF’s disbandment. Prosecutors alleged that Klett and two other former RAF members, Ernst-Volker Staub and Burkhard Garweg, committed these crimes to support their underground lifestyle. It should be noted that Staub and Garweg remain at large.
In the court’s findings, Klett was convicted of various charges, including aggravated robbery and extortion. Interestingly, five of the alleged crimes were not pursued further, with the focus shifting to eight specific robberies. Collectively, the group reportedly stole around 2.4 million euros (approximately $2.8 million).
During the sentencing, some of Klett’s supporters were present, expressing their discontent with the verdict by chanting “Freedom for Daniela,” leading to their removal from the courtroom. Hans-Jacob Schindler, from the Counter-Extremism Project, noted that Klett has gained a sort of “grandma heroine” status among some factions of Berlin’s far left.
There are indications that Klett might face additional legal challenges. Federal prosecutors have charged her with attempted murder linked to activities while she was part of the RAF, although past terrorism charges have exceeded the statute of limitations. Authorities are looking to formally connect her to three assaults carried out by leftist groups between 1990 and 1993.
Upon her arrest, investigators reportedly found an arsenal in Klett’s apartment, including weapons, ammunition, and counterfeit identity documents, along with 240,000 euros in cash. Remarkably, reports suggest that she led a seemingly normal life in the years she spent in hiding in Berlin, even going on vacations and sharing an apartment with a man who claimed ignorance of her true identity until her arrest.
