Police and security services deny these reports just as they have continually denied attacks against women and increased crime due to Muslim migrants.
One witness claimed she has seen Islamic State logos and sharia police slogans on a car in Hamburg’s Wandsbek district in a black VW that had three women wearing a full-face veil. The hood of the car was described as having a large logo on it with a blue border which read: “Sharia Police”.
A second case was reported at the Dammtor railway station where witnesses said they saw the Islamic State logo hanging from the rear view mirror of a bus on which five to seven burka-clad individuals could be seen.
The first sharia police were formed in 2014 by radical preacher and Islamic convert Sven Lau to tackle what he deemed unIslamic behaviour in Wuppertal. The group wore high-visibility jackets with the words “Sharia Police” on the back.
The patrols harassed locals in the area who were drinking, gambling, or engaging in any other activity considered forbidden in Muslim countries. The group also put up stickers indicating areas that were “sharia controlled zones” and subject to the Islamic holy law, rather than German secular laws.
Sven Lau was arrested this year after he had made several trips to the Middle East where authorities say he made contact with the Islamic State.