The three Turkish citizens ranging in age from 26 to 50 years old were picked up last Wednesday after a court issued arrest warrants, public prosecutor Horst Hund in the western city of Koblenz said in a statement.

They are believed to have acted on behalf of the PKK in Bonn and Koblenz since 2007.

"In that time the accused were responsible for distributing propaganda and organizing and holding political events," Hund said. "The accused are in particular strongly suspected of having directed funds that they collected from private Kurdish citizens and business people in the Bonn and Koblenz regions to chapters of the PKK."

Hund said it was in the course of the fundraising drive the three tried to extort money from the Kurdish owner of a snack shop and attacked him when he refused to pay.

The suspects have been charged with belonging to a criminal organization and attempted extortion by force. They have denied the accusations.

The PKK, which has been attacking inside Turkey since 1984, is regarded as a terrorist organization by the European Union, the U.S. and Turkey.

It has been banned in Germany since 1993.

Agencies

Güncelleme Tarihi: 17 Mart 2008, 14:47