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Weigelt is said to have attacked a journalist
Photo: Peter Hagen / OTZ
After being accused of attacking a reporter, the mayor of the small Thuringian town of Bad Lobenstein, Thomas Weigelt, has been temporarily relieved of his duties.
This was decided by the responsible district office of the Saale-Orla district in Schleiz.
Previously, “several serious misconduct” by the non-party mayor had been examined under official law.
Specifically, it is about six “significant breaches of duty”.
These include the defamation of constitutional bodies, the financial damage to the town of Bad Lobenstein and the attack on a journalist at a town festival in mid-August.
This is documented in a video clip.
According to the newspaper, the local reporter for the "Ostthüringer Zeitung" injured his elbow and his equipment was damaged.
He filed a criminal complaint on suspicion of bodily harm and property damage.
Weigelt does not want to have touched the reporter
Mayor Weigelt later stated that he felt provoked by the reporter but did not touch him.
He fell because he took a step backwards and then collided with a festival visitor.
A deselection of the controversial mayor failed in July.
The necessary quorum was not reached during the vote.
Since Weigelt is expected to be removed from the civil service "due to the nature, the amount and the seriousness of the allegations against him", he could be removed from the service by the legal supervisory authority before the end of the procedure, according to the District press release.
This is accompanied by a reduction in salaries.
Should the ongoing investigations by the legal supervisory authority lead to the filing of a disciplinary action, the decision on the final removal of Thomas Weigelt from the civil service would be made at the administrative court in Meiningen.
The deputy mayor, Klaus Möller, will manage the official business until a possible removal from the civil service or another conclusion of the disciplinary proceedings.
kek/dpa
