A representative of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party bit a demonstrator during a brawl outside the AfD party conference in the western city of Essen on Saturday.
Stefan Hrdy, 67, claimed in an interview with dpa on Sunday that he bit the man in self-defense while there was an “escalating situation” with anti-AfD protesters trying to block the Grughalle arena, where the congress is being held.
A spokeswoman for the police in Essen stated that she was aware of the biting incident through the media, but that she could not yet say whether the person bitten by Hrdy had filed a report.
According to the spokeswoman, a police investigation into the incident is still ongoing.
Hrdy told dpa he was driving to the location when he came across a protest blockade. When he got out of his car and asked a police officer to clear the road for him, he said he was suddenly attacked.
“Then I got a kick in the right calf, fell down and two or three fell on top of me, and then a kick came from the right, I was able to dodge a little, then I grabbed the leg and bit down so that I am not kicked again,” Hrdy said.
At that point, according to Hrdy, police officers intervened and he was able to get up and continue driving.
The Bild newspaper published a video of the incident, showing Hrdy walking towards a police cordon. Several protesters stand in his way, a commotion ensues and Hrdy falls to the ground.
Parts of the video do not match Hrdy’s story: it only shows a protester lying with his leg on top of him and Hrdy biting his calf. The kick to the calf that Hrdy described is also not seen in the video, although the view of the fight is partially obscured.
Hrdy, a retired police officer who joined the AfD in 2016, said he planned to press charges. He has no visible injuries from the incident.
The AfD party conference was accompanied by massive protests on Saturday that attracted tens of thousands of people. Sometimes there were violent clashes.
According to police reports, 28 officers were injured in clashes between police and activists, one seriously.
Large groups of people, sometimes as many as several hundred, repeatedly tried to stop deputies or break through police barriers, police said Saturday evening.
