WIESBADEN, Germany - German police swooped on more than 300 homes across the country to smash an Internet ring trading neo-Nazi and racist songs.
The federal crime office (BKA) said it had opened probes against 342 suspects in 15 of Germany's 16 states believed to be involved in trading songs online with banned lyrics.
In the early-morning raids of 333 apartments, police seized computers and CDs.
"Incitement to racial hatred is not a trifle," BKA president Joerg Ziercke said, adding that skinhead music allowed neo-Nazis to make inroads with German youth.
"Young people are being targeted and brought into the world of anti-Semitism and hatred of foreigners."
The BKA said that after concerts, the Internet was the most important medium for spreading far-right music, particularly via online music swap sites.
In 2001, German police staged raids on more than 100 apartments of suspects believed to be trading neo-Nazi music on the Web site Napster (news - web sites) and confiscated computers and disks.
