German police Tuesday arrested one of the country's most prominent Islamist preachers on charges of supporting a "terrorist group" fighting in Syria, ​AFP reports.

The man, German citizen Sven Lau, 35, made headlines last year by organizing a vigilante "Sharia Police" group that patrolled German streets seeking to enforce Islamic law.

Lau is accused of supporting and recruiting fighters for the Syria-based Jaish al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar (JMA), or Army of Emigrants and Supporters, which Germany lists as a terrorist organization.