Vienna, April 22 (IANS/DPA): Two young couples from Bavaria visited Hitler's birthplace in Austria on his birthday and have been charged with suspected violations of the Nazi Prohibition Act.

The group, aged between 24 and 31, come from the Plattling area in the district of Deggendorf, the Austrian police announced on Monday. According to the police,

A police patrol observed one of the women giving the Hitler salute.

When questioned, the 26-year-old stated that she had only made the forbidden gesture as a joke.

According to the police, however, messages and photos relating to National Socialism that had been sent to the group were found on her cell phone.

Every year around Hitler's birthday, officers increased patrols around the house where he was born on April 20, 1889.

Work began on remodelling the building in October. The renovation is intended to prevent neo-Nazis from visiting the site on the border with Bavaria as a place of pilgrimage.

In future, the state-owned building is to be used as a police station and for human rights training.