Greens lawmaker caught with crystal meth in Berlin
March 2, 2016
Volker Beck, an MP for the Greens, was caught with drugs by Berlin authorities on Tuesday.
Mass-market daily "Bild" reported on Wednesday that authorities said they found crystal meth in Beck's possession and that the politician was cooperative during the search.
"I have always represented a liberal drug policy," Beck said in a statement. "In regards to the charges that have been leveled against me, my lawyer in due course will give a statement to the prosecutor."
The Green politician said he would resign from several of his posts in the Bundestag, including his postings as spokesman for internal and religious affairs, as well as from his role as Chair of the German-Israeli Parliamentary Friendship Group.
The 55-year-old Beck, who did not give up his parliamentary mandate, has served in the Bundestag since 1994 and from 2002 to 2013 was the Greens' parliamentary group leader. In 2013, he raised a furor in Germany when he called for decriminalizing sexual contact with children.
blc/sms (AFP, dpa)