Boncentum financed

Salafist preacher allegedly embezzled donations

"Abdelhamid" belongs to the extremist Salafist scene in Germany, which had called for the proclamation of a "caliphate" in Hamburg.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/APA/DPA/Spotify)

He promised help and probably pocketed it all himself: an Islamist TikTok star is suspected of fraud in Germany. The man is said to have embezzled donations and prepared his escape to Dubai.

Under the name "Abdelhamid", he reaches hundreds of thousands of followers as a preacher on TikTok and Instagram. For the German security authorities, his videos are seen as the start of a spiral of radicalization.

According to the North Rhine-Westphalia Office for the Protection of the Constitution, the world view that he spreads in a chummy manner and often in a sports jersey is extremist and Salafist. But that is not why the preacher was arrested in Düsseldorf. He is suspected of commercial and gang fraud.

Hundreds of thousands of euros lied about
The 33-year-old is said to have raised over 353,000 euros with 19 appeals for donations for children in need and charitable causes. However, only just under 5,000 euros are said to have actually been forwarded in accordance with the appeals for donations.

"Abdelhamid" is emphatically chummy.(Bild: Instagram/Screenshot, Krone KREATIV)

His 33-year-old partner and his 37-year-old sister are said to have taken part. They are also under investigation, the police and public prosecutor's office reported. The preacher already has a relevant criminal record. So far, fines have been imposed on him, said public prosecutor Laura Neumann.

Luxury life financed with donations
The Salafist lifestyle influencer, as he is described in the NRW Ministry of the Interior's Islamism situation report, had instead invested the money in luxury watches and his lavish lifestyle. A judge has since sent him to custody - because of the risk of escape and repetition. The 33-year-old has remained silent about the current allegations. The presumption of innocence applies.

The investigators had noticed that his appeals for donations remained vague and nebulous. As a rule, he did not say where exactly the money should go and did not mention any cooperation with aid organizations. The work of the "Donation" investigation commission had already begun in 2021 and his home had already been searched last year. Despite this, he had diligently continued to solicit donations.

Wanted to abscond with the loot
Investigators reported that he then made preparations to flee to Dubai. That is why they struck again on Wednesday and had previously obtained so-called asset freezes. Three apartments were searched.

The investigators provisionally seized assets amounting to 353,000 euros, the amount of the alleged loss. Large bundles containing 20,000 euros in cash, several luxury Rolex watches and several luxury handbags were confiscated and a limousine from Stuttgart was towed away. Seven bank accounts were also seized.

Extremism for a wide audience
With his reach on social media, the 33-year-old German has become a major figure in the Islamist scene. Not only the Situation Report on Islamism, but also the NRW Report on the Protection of the Constitution dedicate a separate section to the Düsseldorf native.

His simple language has also met with great approval: the authorities reported that he already had over ten million "likes" on TikTok in January. "Abdelhamid" continues what Pierre Vogel, who now runs a boxing school in Bergheim near Cologne, started: making extremist Salafism accessible to a wider audience.