Hamburg police are investigating 15 active and retired officers over allegations of sharing racist and extremist messages in private chats.

Early morning raids were conducted at the homes of six active and three retired officers, resulting in the seizure of numerous data storage devices.

The messages, which included racist, violent, and Nazi-glorifying content, were uncovered during a review of tens of thousands of chat messages linked to prior investigations.

While the messages were deemed not criminally prosecutable, disciplinary proceedings have been launched against the officers, aged 44 to 61. Hamburg Police Chief Falk Schnabel emphasized a zero-tolerance policy towards such behavior, pledging a thorough investigation and appropriate disciplinary actions.