The police in the German capital of Berlin have dissolved their entire personal protection department effective immediately due to alleged “serious breaches of duty”.
German media had previously revealed that two officers from the department had allegedly doubled as bodyguards for famous German rapper Bushido, even though such side jobs were forbidden.
On October 17, the law enforcement agency announced that an internal audit had “revealed strong evidence of suspected corruption in the LKA 616 personal protection department” as “former members of the unit have allegedly provided private protection to a former protected person and may have made improper use of official resources”.
The personal protection department in question will now be dissolved. The head of the unit has been relieved of his duties and all officers are being transferred to other units. The Berlin police also said disciplinary and criminal proceedings were underway and that they were “establishing enhanced supervisory and control mechanisms”.
Berlin police vice president Marco Langner said: “Personal protection demands absolute loyalty towards the state and unlimited integrity. Proximity to protected persons must never turn into dependence. Only those who are immune to corruption and act conscientiously can protect the trust that underpins our work.
“The measures that have been introduced are necessary to secure this trust in the long term.”
On October 11, local newspaper Berliner Zeitung (BZ) had revealed that the two men in question had been recognised by colleagues in an Instagram video by TV station RTL. It showed an RTL journalist interviewing rapper Anis Ferchichi – better known by his stage name Bushido – and his wife in a Berlin diner. The two officers in question were allegedly visible in the background.
According to BZ, up to 10 police officers were allegedly covertly moonlighting for the rapper over several months, including the head of the department in question. Internal sources claimed that some of their colleagues had allegedly accompanied Bushido on a trip to Dubai.
Ferchichi – who is cultivating the image of an Arab-German gangster in his music – and his family were under personal protection from the police for several years after the rapper had sued members of the Abou-Chaker clan.
That is the Berlin-based extended family of Palestinian origins, which is allegedly involved in various sorts of organised crime. Ferchichi – a father of seven – was reportedly involved with members of the clan for much of his career but later tried to sever these ties, suing his former manager Arafat Abou-Chaker for extortion and assault.
After official Berlin protection ended in 2024, the rapper had to provide for his own personal security, allegedly preferring to hire the officers protecting him previously.
The police are now investigating how much their officers may have been paid for their alleged work for the rapper and whether they were carrying their service weapons at the time.
