A former German engineer, who died in 2018, has left his entire $7.5 million fortune to the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

The gift, which, according to German media outlet Suddeutsche Zeitung, included real estate, gold bars, gold coins as well as a number of patents, was the biggest gift received by the political party since it was founded in 2013. 

The identity of the man is yet to be confirmed, however local German media have reported that he lived in the rural town of Buckeburg, North-West Germany. 

The will was found in the man's house following his death in July 2018 but had to be passed to the probate court in order to be processed, the public prosecutor's office in Buckeburg told German outlet DPA. 

Earlier this week, the controversial political party confirmed that they had accepted the gift, only a couple of months after saying they had a "very interesting" item within the party's belongings at a party convention. 

AfD have hit the headlines in recent weeks, with at least two German officials being forced to resign for reportedly backing the far-right party in a number of polls including the surprise election of Thomas Kemmerich as state premier in Thuringia with AfD support. 

READ MORE 

https://newseu.cgtn.com/news/2020-02-09/Two-more-depart-amid-row-over-AfD-s-role-in-German-regional-election-NWK0mkWvJK/index.html

The actual worth of the will may have increased since 2018 as the price of gold has increased by 20 percent within the last two years. 

This gift will be seen as a huge boost for the AfD, which has recently been asking for donations from party members after it was threatened with potentially heavy fines over failure to disclose the origin of donations, in breach of campaign finance law.

The AfD's treasurer, Carsten Hutter, said in a statement that the man who left his fortune was not known to be a supporter or member of the party.