Police in the Berlin arrested two Chinese tourists Saturday morning for allegedly making Nazi salutes while posing for cellphone pictures in front of the the Reichstag building housing Germany’s federal parliament.

The suspects, identified only as Chinese tourists ages 36 and 49, were spotted doing the Hitlergruß gesture associated with notorious Nazi leader Adolf Hitler at about 9:20 a.m. Saturday and were arrested for “using symbols of illegal organizations,” Germany’s Stuttgarter Zeitung newspaper reported citing Berlin police.

Both suspects were taken to a police station for questioning before being released after each posted €500 bail, or about $590, the newspaper reported.

Symbols associated with Nazism are illegal in Germany, and individuals convicted of violating the government’s ban on using “symbols of unconstitutional organizations” risk up to three years behind bars under German law.

Hitler and his National Socialist Party ruled Germany from 1933 through 1945, and a fire at the Reichstag one month into his reign infamously served as a catalyst for his subsequent consolidation of power.

Sign up for Daily Newsletters Manage Newsletters

Copyright © 2020 The Washington Times, LLC. Click here for reprint permission.