Breitenau: Warrant enforced over cannabis law breach

On Saturday, 28 June 2026, a 43-year-old German national was subject to a routine entry check at the Breitenau border crossing in the area of responsibility of the Federal Police Inspection Berggießhübel. What initially appeared to be an everyday border crossing developed into an unexpected stop for the man: after presenting his identity card and a subsequent police check, it emerged that the Berlin Public Prosecutor's Office had issued a warrant for his arrest. The 18-day-old warrant was thus enforced at the border – though not through detention, but by payment of a five-figure sum.

Course of events at the border check

The incident took place at the Breitenau border crossing, one of the checkpoints supervised by the Federal Police Inspection Berggießhübel on the German-Czech border. Federal police officers regularly carry out entry checks there, during which travellers present their identity documents and, where applicable, are subject to wanted-person database searches. These system queries are a central instrument of border security: they link police databases with officers on the ground and make it possible to identify wanted persons upon entry or exit.

The 43-year-old presented himself voluntarily for the check. After the usual verification of his identity, the database search returned a hit: an open arrest warrant existed against him, issued by the Berlin Public Prosecutor's Office. The warrant was only 18 days old at that point – a comparatively short period that underlines the current nature of the search measure. For the federal police, the hit meant the immediate enforcement of the judicial order, provided the statutory requirements were met.

Background: violation of the Cannabis Consumption Act

The legal basis of the arrest warrant dates back to 2024. In September 2024, the Berlin-Tiergarten District Court convicted the man of violating the Cannabis Consumption Act (Konsum-Cannabisgesetz) and sentenced him to a 50-day substitute custodial sentence. The Cannabis Consumption Act, in force in Germany since 1 April 2024, regulates the handling of cannabis for adults within a new legal framework. Among other things, it defines permitted possession amounts, age limits and bans on consumption in certain areas such as the immediate vicinity of schools and daycare centres.

Those who violate these provisions may face fines but also criminal consequences. In the present case, the court went beyond a simple monetary penalty and imposed a substitute custodial sentence – an instrument of the German legal system applied when fines are not paid or when the law expressly provides for it. The 43-year-old faced 50 days of deprivation of liberty unless he could avert the penalty in another way.

Substitute custodial sentence and payment option

German criminal law recognises the substitute custodial sentence as a last resort for enforcing monetary penalties or certain sanctions. As a rule, each day of substitute imprisonment is assessed at a fixed daily rate based on the convicted person's economic capacity. In this case, the man was offered a concrete alternative: he could avert the prison sentence by paying a total of 6,672.64 euros.

This amount comprises the basic penalty and possible ancillary costs such as procedural fees. After being identified at the border crossing, the person concerned opted for payment. He settled the required amount immediately and was then able to continue his journey. The arrest warrant was thus effectively enforced without committal to a penal institution – a procedure not uncommon at border checks when the person concerned has the financial means and accepts payment.

Cannabis law and border police working together

The case illustrates how the new cannabis legislation interacts in practice with traditional instruments of criminal enforcement. Since the legalisation of controlled cannabis consumption for adults, extended rules apply whose violation can still be prosecuted under criminal or administrative law. Violations of the Cannabis Consumption Act are handled by public prosecutor's offices and courts; enforcement of open arrest warrants is the responsibility of the police – at the border, the federal police.

The Federal Police Inspection Berggießhübel is responsible for border protection and police control of cross-border traffic in its section. In addition to combating smuggling and illegal entry, wanted-person hits are among the daily operational results. Reports such as that of 28 June 2026 show that proceedings related to cannabis law do not stop at the border: those wanted domestically can be apprehended upon entry or exit.

Responsible authorities and procedural path

The Berlin Public Prosecutor's Office was responsible for criminal prosecution and had issued the arrest warrant. The judgment came from the Berlin-Tiergarten District Court, one of Berlin's district courts with jurisdiction over regulatory offences and crimes in the field of narcotics and cannabis law. The Federal Police Inspection Berggießhübel acted as the enforcing authority at the border and documented the case for the press.

Media enquiries about the operation should be directed to press spokesman Frank Rehbein of the Federal Police Inspection Berggießhübel. The report was published via the press portal and distributed through news aktuell. The Breitenau border crossing lies within the inspection's area of operations and is an important hub for travellers between Germany and the Czech Republic.

Significance for travellers and legal practice

For travellers, the case makes clear that open arrest warrants and outstanding penalties can become enforceable at any police check – especially at border crossings – even months or years after a judgment. The automated wanted-person query during entry checks is reliable and carried out in real time. Those who can avert a substitute custodial sentence by payment may in some circumstances be able to continue their journey, provided no further grounds for detention exist.

In the present case, the border stop ended for the 43-year-old with payment of 6,672.64 euros and subsequent onward travel. The 50-day substitute custodial sentence for violating the Cannabis Consumption Act is thus considered averted. The 18-day-old arrest warrant of the Berlin Public Prosecutor's Office was enforced at the border – an example of how cannabis-related convictions, sentence enforcement and border police work interact in Germany.