A German city employee and his wife are in custody for allegedly stealing over €1 million in coins from parking ticket machines in Kempten
MUNICH: A German city employee and his wife are in custody for allegedly stealing at least €1 million from parking ticket machines.
Police and prosecutors issued arrest warrants for the Kempten municipal worker and his spouse on charges of theft and aiding and abetting in 720 cases.
Investigators were alerted by a bank’s money laundering suspicion report last October.
The Kempten public prosecutor learned that cash was repeatedly deposited into several bank accounts.
The employee is suspected of repeatedly taking coins from parking ticket machines over many occasions.
He allegedly deposited the stolen money into accounts accessible to his wife.
The city of Kempten is believed to have lost well over €1 million from the scheme.
Mayor Thomas Kiechle said he was “stunned and dismayed” by the allegations.
Officials searched city offices on Monday as part of the ongoing investigation.
“I fully support the public prosecutor’s office and the police in their thorough investigation of the allegations,” the mayor stated.
“While the proceedings are ongoing, the presumption of innocence remains.”
Kiechle pledged to immediately review work processes and address any identified weaknesses. – Bernama-dpa
