Meter Inspector and Spouse Arrested in €1m Parking Theft Investigation
A parking inspector and his wife have been arrested on allegations of misappropriating over €1m out of the coin-operated meters of a small town in Germany.
The unnamed city worker is believed to have taken cash out of parking meters in the town on multiple instances and deposited them in financial accounts that his wife had control over, authorities stated in a statement.
A money laundering alert by a bank alerted investigators to the suspected theft. The attendant has been charged with 720 counts of theft, while his wife is charged with multiple counts of aiding and abetting the crime.
The town's Head the mayor expressed he was shocked and disappointed by the claims.
In October, the local legal authorities were informed that cash was repeatedly being placed into multiple bank accounts, according to reports.
Officers then raided office premises in the early hours of 24 November, the same day that a man in his forties and a woman in her late thirties were arrested.
They are now being detained in different jails.
It is uncertain how much time it might have taken the couple to accrue the amount.
In reaction to the allegations, the mayor announced the appointment of a committee to examine previous procedures, uncover possible weaknesses, and reliably remedy them for the future.
Kiechle noted that the identities of the couple could not at this time be released due to the active probe and confidentiality issues.
In a official comment, Kiechle stated: "I naturally back the public prosecutor's office and the police in their detailed investigation of the allegations."
"Until the proceedings are concluded, the innocent until proven guilty stands," he continued.
Kempten is one of the oldest settlements in Germany. Situated in the country's south, it sits under the hills of the Allgäu region and has around seventy thousand inhabitants.
