As of: March 16, 2024, 3:54 p.m
By: Bert Brosch
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Warning for caution: Winfried Frey (l.) and Ludwig Waldinger chatted in the Small Theater about old fraud cases - and current cases with the same scam © Bert Brosch
A chief detective and author reported in Haar about old, sometimes bizarre cases of fraud.
It was about the first snowball system, but also current cases.
Haar – “Does anyone believe in the imminent visit of spaceships from Venus?” Winfried Frey asked the 40 or so visitors in the café of the Haar Small Theater.
Shaking heads in turn.
“Unfortunately, many believe in the confused theories of Reich citizens and identities,” said Ludwig Waldinger.
The two reported on old, true fraud scandals and the corresponding very current cases.
The actor, director and author Frey has been going through the files of the Munich State Archives for ten years.
He transferred the most spectacular cases from this to a stage program with Chief Inspector Waldinger, press spokesman for the LKA.
The first program was called “Murder in Bavaria”.
“People were so excited that they asked us to make a second one,” says Frey.
And that's what they did, it's called "True Crime - Lying and Deception".
“Our aim is always to draw parallels between the old cases and the very current ones – and there are,” said Waldinger.
“It’s all a scam”
For example, in the banking scandal involving actress Adele Spitzeder.
In the mid-19th century, it promised everyone ten percent interest per month - i.e. 120 percent per year.
“Everyone who gave her money was immediately paid the first two months’ interest.
“Word quickly spread about this incredible business and 30,000 people – from all walks of life – paid her large sums of money,” said Frey.
Spitzeder did not invest the money, but indulged in luxury himself, but also gave interest-free loans to the poor and set up popular soup kitchens, using the new deposits to cover the interest of the previous lenders.
At the time of its bankruptcy in 1871, it had accumulated a sum of 14 million gold marks in damages, which would be worth around 100 million euros today.
“Spitzeder received three years in prison for this and died completely impoverished in 1895,” said Frey.
Waldinger quickly led us to the present: “150 years ago, Spitzeder set up the first pyramid scheme in history, which worked as long as there were new donors.”
Today the same thing is happening in social networks.
“Incredible interest and profits are promised.
People of all ages and backgrounds fall for it, handing over cash, jewelry or control of their computers to strangers with the prospect of abnormal profits,” said Waldinger.
He could only urge extreme caution and not to believe any promise of high profits.
Neither by email, WhatsApp or on the phone.
“It’s all a scam!”
“So they’re not Venusians today – but they’re still very crude ideas.”
The second case seems just as incredible: In the 1950s, a fraud gang claimed that saviors from the planet Venus wanted to take over the world.
The world ruler should be “President Michallek” in Berlin at the seat of the world government.
The Venusians would come to support with their spaceships.
“In order to take over the world, the new government needs money, which was donated by some, especially German-Chileans, old Nazis who fled to South America after the war,” reported Frey.
Over 500,000 marks were raised before “Michallek” was sentenced to prison in 1961.
Listening intently: the 40 or so visitors in the café of the Small Theater Haar © bb
“Today in Germany we have around 23,000 Reich citizens, self-governors or identitarians who deny the state’s right to exist and reject the Basic Law,” said Waldinger.
Many have weapons and are violent.
A group of imperial citizens around Henry XIII.
Prince Reuss even wanted to carry out a coup in 2022.
“So they’re not Venusians today – but they’re still very crude ideas.”
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Frey and Waldinger have just completed a third program under the title “Sex & Crime”, which will probably be as amusing as it is interesting.
Further news from Haar and the Munich district can be found here.