Confession after almost seven years of protestations of innocence: the property developer Volker Tretzel before the Regional Court of Munich I. © Stefan Aigner
The Regensburg entrepreneur had confessed that he wanted to secure the goodwill of the former mayor Joachim Wolbergs by disguised monetary payments of around 450,000 euros.
Regensburg/Munich – For the property developer Volker Tretzel, the chapter of the Regensburg corruption affair is over – at least for the time being. As Laurent Lafleur, head of the press office for criminal matters at the Higher Regional Court of Munich, confirmed to our editorial team when asked, the conviction of the 80-year-old is now legally binding.
The entrepreneur Volker Tretzel has withdrawn his initial appeal against the verdict of the Fifth Criminal Chamber of the Regional Court of Munich I.
Verdict in Regensburg corruption affair final: One and a half years on probation plus a fine of 1.5 million euros
On February 2 of this year, the chamber had sentenced the construction magnate (BTT Bauteam Tretzel) to a suspended sentence of one year and six months plus a fine of 1.5 million euros (300 daily rates) for four cases of granting advantages.
The 80-year-old had previously confessed to knowingly using a straw man system for the purpose of concealing financial benefits. With payments of around 450,000 euros around the 2014 local elections, spread over several people and years, he wanted to secure "the goodwill" of the (future) mayor Joachim Wolbergs. Wolbergs knew that too.
Verdict final: Confession secured the entrepreneur suspended sentence
The verdict was preceded by an agreement between the court, the defense and the public prosecutor's office, in the context of which Tretzel assured a comprehensive confession. In return, he only had to reckon with a maximum of a suspended sentence and a fine. With the conviction, another criminal case for coercion and accompanying tax offences were also settled.
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Regensburg corruption scandal: Ex-Mayor Wolbergs is still waiting for his trial
Joachim Wolbergs himself had watched the trial in Munich as a spectator. The new edition of his trial has not yet been scheduled. Before that, the Federal Constitutional Court still has to decide on Wolbergs' appeal against the decision of the Federal Court of Justice.
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The Federal Court of Justice had judged an initial judgment of the Regensburg Regional Court, in which Wolbergs was convicted of accepting benefits, acquitted of many other accusations and went unpunished, to be too lenient and referred him to Munich for a new trial. Another conviction of Wolbergs for bribery was not objected to by the Federal Court of Justice. It has been legally binding ever since.
Verdict against property developer final: "A dirty deal"
In connection with Tretzel's confession and the understanding in advance, Joachim Wolbergs and his defense lawyer Peter Witting spoke of a "dirty deal" that had been entered into here. This position is also held by the renowned Regensburg criminal law expert Professor Jan Bockemühl.
Tretzel's defense attorney Annette von Stetten denied such allegations. At the same time, she emphasized the courage of her client. Volker Tretzel is well aware that he will have to testify as a witness in the upcoming trial against Wolbergs. The corruption scandal is not yet completely over for Tretzel either.
Regensburg corruption scandal: Numerous convictions and fines in the millions
In connection with the 2016 investigations into veiled campaign donations from the construction industry to the SPD and CSU in Regensburg, there have been at least eleven final convictions with a total of more than four years in prison (suspended on probation) and a fine of almost four million euros. According to 13a, 153 proceedings were discontinued with fines of more than half a million euros.
A prominent corruption investigator has been convicted of corruption in Frankfurt, of all places. The man awarded contracts to experts and secretly earned money in the process. The fact that no one noticed this for twelve years is due to the judiciary itself, the judge finds.
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