Neo-Nazi group “Terror 18”: young, radical, aggressive

Dwayne S. was noticed early on with threats of violence. The young person from a village near Schwerin posted on social media that he was going “hunting for Antifa”. Or that he is looking for leftists “to beat up”. At the same time, he promoted the local right-wing extremist groups Division Schwerin and Sturm Nord. Then Dwayne S. is said to have co-founded a group himself at the beginning of September of that year in a closed Whatsapp channel: Terror 18.

The group is now the focus of the investigating authorities. The responsible public prosecutor's offices in Flensburg and Lüneburg said they were being investigated with "high pressure", with specially recruited staff. Because with Terror 18, action should obviously be taken. On Friday, a suspected member, 15-year-old Marcello P., was stopped by anti-fascists with a gasoline can in Wahlstedt in Schleswig-Holstein and then arrested by the police. He is said to have previously announced an attack on a nearby asylum center in the chat group.

Marcello P. has been in custody ever since. A second suspect, Fabian W. from Winsen in Lower Saxony, 19 years old, was also searched and his cell phone was also confiscated. He is said to have incited the crime. This is what you can read in chats from the “Terror 18” group, which the Antifa research group Exif revealed: “Let’s set something on fire (…) then they’ll all burn and that’s even much better, then we don’t have to beat them.” There has to be “at least one dead guy.” Fabian W. is said to have threatened: “We’ll cut their necks.” Previously, W. is said to have posted a video in the group of a stone being thrown at a window pane of a refugee accommodation in Winsen.

The Flensburg and Lüneburg public prosecutors explained that the focus was now on evaluating the confiscated cell phones of the two accused. And one question is whether there shouldn't be other defendants in this case. Because it wasn't just Marcello P. and Fabian W. who recently threatened violence.

Group founder Dawyne S. also encouraged this - as his posts against leftists show. In further chats available to the taz, he specifically suggested “setting fire” to an alternative housing project in Schwerin. In another posting, he showed a picture of a residential building - along with the reference that “the next left-wing victim” lives there and will soon “receive a visit at home”. In the end, both plans failed to materialize.

Dawnye S. also took part in chats about so-called pedo hunting, the act of lying in wait for a suspected pedophile. Photos also show Dawyne S. at an anti-CSD march in May in Parchim in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

A few months later he is said to have founded Terror 18. At the beginning of October, Dawyne S. advertised the group on social media platforms, sometimes depicting an assault rifle or SS skull and crossbones. In one picture, S. is standing in front of a “Terror 18” lettering on a wall. S. has also already campaigned for a demonstration by the group “against left-wing extremism”. However, this should not take place in Frankfurt/Oder until April 2027.

According to Exif, the internal “Terror 18” group is said to have had 43 members, many of them very young and only in virtual contact with each other. In addition to a leader, “regional leaders” were also named for several federal states, and there were also subgroups such as Demoorga or Saufgruppe. Some of the regional groups maintained their own accounts - but so far they had not been frequented. According to Exif, there were sometimes more than 1,000 posts a day in the main group. Pictures of Hitler were also shared and shoelace colors for combat boots were discussed. In addition to their radical attitudes, many group members also seem to have been “bored,” writes Exif when asked by taz.

Another suspected member is also noteworthy: Amon G. from Schwerin, whose grandfather was an NPD city councilor in the Schwerin city council. Amon G. also seems to have personal contact with Dawyne S. and was at the anti-CSD march in Parchim. And he also threatens violence online. “The day will come when I will punch you in the face.” (sic) With reference to Israel, he complained about “Drecksj...”.

Amon G. also sought proximity to the AfD. Photos show him in an AfD shirt at a state party rally on August 16th this year in Schwerin - and also at the AfD election campaign conclusion in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania a month later with Ulrich Siegmund. He was also photographed at an AfD youth march in Schwerin at the beginning of August. The AfD left a taz query about Amon G. unanswered. The alleged “Terror 18” boss Dawyne S., on the other hand, posted online that the AfD would change a lot of things - but what was needed was a NSDAP.

The local press reports that member Marcello P., who set off with the petrol can, had psychological problems. The 15-year-old grew up with foster parents and is considered to have an attachment disorder and be susceptible to manipulation. And he had committed crimes before, but not political ones.

Fabian W. was also said to have a severe mental disability and had to take medication every day. He was also noticed for criminal offenses, as a spokeswoman for the Lüneburg public prosecutor's office confirmed to the taz. However, these were “minor” and not political – the proceedings were discontinued.

According to taz information, the Federal Prosecutor's Office is keeping an eye on the proceedings - it is unclear whether they will take it over. This was recently the case with a similar group: the Last Defense Wave (LVW). This group was also young and radical - and took action. In Brandenburg she set fire to a cultural center and in Thuringia she attacked a refugee accommodation. The federal prosecutor's office viewed this as terrorism and made arrests. The Hamburg Higher Regional Court imposed youth sentences of up to five years in prison on eight defendants.

For some Terror 18 supporters, the LVW seemed to be a role model. Dawyne S. even claimed in a posting that he used to be part of the group himself. In the meantime he promoted an LVW offshoot: “Come to LVW, we need the most stable ones.” Apparently that wasn't successful. So followed Terror 18.

And the group was not initially stopped by security authorities. A spokeswoman for the Lüneburg public prosecutor's office told the taz that it was a journalist who informed the Lower Saxony police about chat excerpts last Wednesday evening. The NDR journalist was apparently privy to the chats by Exif. According to taz information, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution is also said to have read the “Terror18” group - and warned the police on Thursday. The Federal Criminal Police Office is also said to have known about the group in October.

Marcello P. and Fabian W. were identified that day. The police came to see her that evening. Because no means of crime were found, only the cell phones were confiscated, according to the public prosecutor's office. The two teenagers remained at large. A day later, Marcello P. set off with the petrol can - and was stopped by anti-fascists.

The arrest of their comrade-in-arms doesn't seem to make everyone in the Young Nazi group pause. The Schweriner and AfD sympathizer Amon G. then posted a call for “Free M” on his online profile, apparently for Marcello P. And elsewhere the slogan: “Power and honor T18!”