crime
Higher Regional Court Munich expects Wirecard charges by mid-March
The Wirecard logo can be seen on the payment service provider’s head office at the time in Aschbeim near Munich. Photo: Peter Kneffel / dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
Ex-Wirecard CEO Braun has been in custody for a year and a half. According to the Munich Higher Regional Court, charges could now be brought before the next detention test.
The Munich Higher Regional Court (OLG) assumes that the Wirecard fraud scandal will be charged by mid-March. The second criminal senate wrote that in a decision, said a court spokesman on Thursday.
The limitation is, however, that no unforeseen difficulties arise during the investigation. The «Spiegel» had previously reported on the decision.
Ex-Wirecard CEO Markus Braun has been in custody for a year and a half, and the next detention test is scheduled for mid-March. Prosecutors are rushed to deal with detention cases so that the accused do not sit in jail for long periods of time without a verdict. With the notice of the OLG, a process against the Austrian manager is getting closer. After the prosecution has brought an indictment, the Munich Regional Court must first decide whether the indictment will be admitted.
Wirecard filed for bankruptcy in the summer of 2020 after the company had admitted air bookings of 1.9 billion euros – the money could not be found and has disappeared to this day. The investigators therefore assume that the Wirecard management board inflated the balance sheets with fabricated transactions in order to swindle billions from banks and investors. Braun, on the other hand, obviously sees himself as a victim.