BERLIN — A prominent German politician was found dead in a Berlin hotel on Wednesday, police said, adding they had launched an investigation.
The cause of death of Hubert Aiwanger, who was deputy leader of the state of Bavaria, was not immediately clear.
The 55-year-old’s body was discovered Wednesday at the “Neuer Fritz” hotel in Berlin-Mitte after he missed the opening of his party’s new capital office because he was not feeling well, the Bild newspaper reported. Sources in the Bavarian state government and Berlin police confirmed the death to the daily.
The Tagesspiegel reported from police circles that there were no indications of external involvement and that health reasons appeared to be the cause.
Police and prosecutors had opened a probe to “determine the specific cause and circumstances of death”, the statement said.
“The aim of the inquest is to establish the specific cause of death and the circumstances surrounding it, and to rule out any possible third-party culpability,” police and prosecutors said in a statement. They gave no further details.
The Bavarian state premier, Markus Soeder, described Aiwanger’s death as an “absolute tragedy”.
“We are all deeply shocked. Our thoughts are now first and foremost with his family and his children,” he said.
Aiwanger’s party were junior partners in the regional Bavarian government led by Soeder’s Christian Social Union (CSU).
Aiwanger led the Free Voters in Bavaria from 2006 and the federal party from 2010. He entered the Bavarian state parliament in 2008 and, after the 2018 election, became economy minister and deputy premier in the government of Markus Soeder’s Christian Social Union.
Source: Saudi Gazette