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The Munich prosecutor apparently considers the former head of Wirecard, Markus Braun, to be heavily involved in the criminal machinations that led to the collapse of the financial services group. According to the current status of the investigation, the Austrian has acted “within the band as a supervisory and directing body”, writes the chief prosecutor Hildegard Bäumler-Hösl in an email that SPIEGEL received and sent to the parliamentary inquiry commission in Berlin. . who wants to clarify the political background of the financial scandal. Braun’s attorney denies all of the prosecution’s allegations.
Braun had “built a system based on the principle of ‘divide and conquer'”, which was characterized by a spirit of camaraderie of the military corps and oaths of allegiance to each other, “says the document that was sent Tuesday. The email is related with the summons of Braun and two other jailed former Wirecard managers. Braun had sued the Federal Court of Justice against their transfer to Berlin and lost in an urgent decision. However, the prosecution was also concerned about the transportation of detainees in prison preventive to the capital.
Worry about threats and intimidation.
In the email, the Munich prosecutor explains to the committee’s secretariat the security concerns that are being seen for the prisoners. Because one of the main suspects, former Wirecard board member Jan Marsalek, is still on the run and obviously has good contacts in secret service circles in various countries. The prosecution, as the email shows, is evidently concerned about the threats and intimidation, not against Braun, but against another manager who was supposed to appear at the committee in Berlin and who has already testified against Braun and Marsalek as a key witness. .
The key witness was “the only one who decided to fully cooperate with the prosecutor,” writes the prosecutor, who “bluntly” admitted his own involvement and “seriously incriminated” both Braun and another board member. That is why these three people are not wanted to meet in the German Bundestag. “In this context, any contact, even just to the eyes, would be dangerous for the investigation.” The key witness was a “traitor” to them, Bäumler-Hösl said in the email.
“He made use of the structure characterized by motivation and psychological pressure”
The paper offers surprisingly deep insight into the Munich researchers’ findings, especially about Markus Braun. This had given “strategic instructions and specific commercial actions.” “When there were signs of deviating from the joint plan, he (along with Marsalek) acted on others and used the structure characterized by motivation and psychological pressure,” says Bäumler-Hösl.
For MPs, this letter is a good basis for questioning the former head of Wirecard. But you must exercise your right to refuse to testify because you are only heard as a witness on the committee. Therefore, the interrogation of Braun, which will require a high logistical effort by the judicial authorities, could be quickly concluded. This is also feared by the parliamentarians of the commission that will meet on Thursday.
