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The two faces of Ebke

Testimony and testimonials paint two different pictures

Kevin Wilson
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Apr 18/01) - Lothar Ebke's daily routine hasn't really changed much. Every day, like clockwork, he signs in at RCMP headquarters.


Lothar Ebke

It's one of the conditions of his bail. His Old Town bed and breakfast still takes guests, and he's known as a gracious host to those who've been invited to his parties.

Ebke, who has lived in Yellowknife for 17 years, was arrested last May at the request of German prosecutors. He was subsequently charged by Canadian authorities with entering the country on false pretenses. Those charges, and charges against four Canadian associates were recently stayed. A publication ban that was in effect has since been lifted.

With the immigration charges against him now on hold, Ebke's fate is now in the hands of two people: the judge who will hear his extradition case and Federal Justice Minister Anne McLellan.

On May 22, just a little over a year to the day he was arrested, Ebke's extradition hearing will probably conclude.

In the two weeks set aside for the hearing, Ebke's lawyer and the Crown, acting on behalf of German prosecutors, will probably paint two very different portraits of the man at the centre of this case.

Ebke has remained silent since he was arrested. Wes Wilson, his Toronto-based lawyer, says his client is acting on his recommendations.

"(Ebke) is being circumspect at my request," said Wilson. Ebke's lawyer adds that the time for commenting on the specifics of the case is later.

"I just don't think it's appropriate (to comment) while the case is before the courts," he said.

Ebke is accused by German authorities of being a member of an organization known as the Revolutionary Cells during the 1980s.

The Revolutionary Cells were one of many left-wing "tendencies" operating in Europe at the time. However, these groups were largely a spent force by this time. In Germany, the Red Brigades and the Baader-Meinhof faction were the most well-known and feared had been broken in the late 1970s.

Much of the German evidence against Ebke comes from a former member of the Cells named Tarek Mousli. German authorities accused Mousli of being one of the masterminds in a series of shootings and bombings which took place between 1986 and 1987.

However, he seems to have cut a deal with prosecutors to avoid going to prison.

In December 2000, CNN reported that Mousli was found guilty of "being a member of a terrorist organization and...explosives charges." He was given a suspended sentence and placed in the German witness protection program.

In all of the incidents to which Ebke is allegedly linked, he is never the trigger man, or the person who builds or plants the bombs. Rather, he is alleged to have stolen a getaway car for the gunmen. He is also accused of renting the cellar where the Revolutionary Cells hid their explosives.

Ebke is not talking about his life in Germany, at least not publicly. Testimonials from his friends in Canada paint a picture very different from the one German prosecutors try to paint.

"He is gentle and kind," one testimonial reads. The testimonials of 17 people from Yellowknife, British Columbia and Alberta were sworn into the record during Ebke's bail hearing. "I have never seen Lothar lose his temper."

Another testimonial reads, "though he talks a lot about political issues as do I (sic). I have never heard him advocate violence or even discuss it as being a viable option for advocating social change."

The judge hearing this case will have to determine whether the evidence presented by the Crown is sufficient for Ebke to be extradited.

According to his lawyer, the judge will "decide if he is extraditable. If he does, then the justice minister has to decide whether to sign the extradition order."