Parking Inspector and Spouse Apprehended in €1m Meter Theft Case
One meter attendant and his spouse have been arrested on suspicion of misappropriating over €1m out of the parking meters of a small town in Germany.
The unnamed municipal employee is thought to have removed coins out of parking meters in Kempten on multiple instances and placed them in financial accounts that his spouse had access to, authorities said in a statement.
A financial crime report by a credit institution notified authorities to the suspected theft. The attendant has been accused with numerous charges of embezzlement, while his wife is charged with multiple counts of aiding and abetting the crime.
The town's Mayor Thomas Kiechle expressed he was stunned and disappointed by the allegations.
In the fall, the local public prosecutor's office were informed that cash was repeatedly being deposited into multiple accounts, according to sources.
Officers then searched work locations in the morning of November 24, the same day that a man in his forties and a woman in her late thirties were taken into custody.
They are now being held in different jails.
It is uncertain how much time it might have taken the couple to accrue the sum.
In response to the accusations, the mayor declared the formation of a commission to review previous work processes, uncover potential flaws, and effectively correct them for the future.
Kiechle noted that the names of the individuals could not currently be disclosed due to the ongoing probe and privacy concerns.
In a official comment, the mayor stated: "I naturally support the legal authorities and the law enforcement in their thorough inquiry of the allegations."
"Until the proceedings are concluded, the presumption of innocence stands," he added.
The town is among the oldest settlements in the country. Located in the country's south, it sits under the hills of the Allgäu and has around 70,000 residents.
