Elderly retired teacher, 75, dubbed ‘terror granny’ arrested after plotting to overthrow German government in armed coup
A RETIRED teacher dubbed "the terror granny" has been arrested over an alleged treason plot to overthrow the German government.
The pensioner, 75, is accused of being the ringleader of a far-right terrorist cell that hoped to kidnap a public official as part of a warped plan to bring reinstate the pre-Nazi German "Second Reich".
The woman, named only as Elisabeth R. due to German privacy laws, is accused of planning to spark a bloody civil war and topple the federal government.
The suspect, dubbed the "terrorist grandmother" by , began planning her schemes alongside four extremist male accomplices in January last year, according to German authorities.
The treasonous plan included kidnapping the German health minister, Karl Lauterbach, for his pro-COVID vaccination policies, it's alleged.
The criminals also planned to destroy power grids and spark country-wide blackouts to ensure chaos and riots ensued, investigators say.
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Lastly, the alleged terrorist group are said to have planned to have an actor address the country acting as chancellor or president to trick the public.
The actor would announce that "The Second Reich" had been reinstated, proclaiming: "The federal government has been deposed and the constitution of 1871 is in force again."
The Second Reich was the German Empire which ruled from 1871 before being defeated by the British and their allies in World War 1.
Germany's defeat saw the Kaiser abdicate and the monarchy collapse - leaving a weakened state known as the Weimar Republic.
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The republic was eventually overtaken by Adolf Hitler, leading to World War 2.
The incendiary group nicknamed themselves "Vereinte Patrioten," or "United Patriots".
Other members attempted to illegally traffic weapons from "the former Yugoslavia", German authorities say.
Elisabeth R. and her accomplice, named as Michael H., allegedly planned to act as the leaders of the new government.
Officers arrested the weapons traffickers after an undercover mission allowed them to seize assault rifles and handguns, according to The Washington Post.
German aristocrat Prince Heinrich XIII was arrested last year over a similar alleged coup attempt.
The Prince reportedly asked Russia for help in overthrowing the German government, and hoped to act as leader after the treasonous coup.
Power-hungry tyrant Vladimir Putin is known to be seeking to destabilise Western governments, especially Germany, amid the war in Ukraine.
Russia's embassy in Germany denied any involvement in plot, however, saying they didn't work with "terrorist groups".
The terrorist plot led by the prince was uncovered after one of the largest search operations in history saw 3,000 cops comb through 130 sites across Germany.
After being found out, it was revealed the plotters truly believed their "new government" would be supported by Russia and the US.
The members believed in conspiracy theories such as those like QAnon, according to prosecutors.
QAnon - the belief that the world is run by a Satanic cabal at war with Donald Trump - has become intertwined with German alt-right extremism.
The Sun Online uncovered German-language websites linked to the Reich Citizens - which claimed Germany is "still occupied" and there was "no peace" following World War 2.
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The terror group attracted members by adhering to these conspiracy theories, such as those surrounding COVID-19.
They added that members of the group also believe Germany is ruled by a so-called deep state.
