It’s about lamps
Raids: Millions in fraud during the renovation of the State Chancellery?
During the renovation of the State Chancellery, bribery is said to have caused damage amounting to millions. There were also raids on the state-owned construction company BLB. The opposition wants answers.
The public prosecutor’s office and the State Criminal Police Office (LKA) are investigating alleged corruption with damage amounting to millions in connection with the renovation of the North Rhine-Westphalian State Chancellery. An LKA spokesman confirmed this in response to a dpa request. The authorities are therefore executing more than 40 search warrants. According to dpa information, there were also raids on properties belonging to the state-owned construction company BLB.
According to the responsible public prosecutor’s office in Wuppertal, more than 100 investigators were on duty that morning. According to the LKA, searches took place in Düsseldorf, Neuss, Mönchengladbach, Erkrath and Münster, among others. According to the investigators, it is about suspicion of bribery and corruption, anti-competitive agreements in tenders, breach of trust and fraud.
Accusations against employees of BLB and the architectural firm
As the dpa learned, the case revolves around the renovation of the lighting in the State Chancellery, which has been modernized for years. There is a suspicion that the accused deliberately influenced the awarding of contracts in order to then issue inflated invoices together with the bidding companies – which were specifically awarded the contract.
Employees of the BLB and employees of an architectural office are said to have been involved. The state-owned construction and real estate company is managing the renovation of the State Chancellery. There were initially no arrest warrants or arrests; the main suspects – five men and two women (36 to 69 years old) – remain at large.
SPD demands clarification from Wüst
The renovation of the State Chancellery has repeatedly caused political debates in recent years because it has become increasingly expensive. Elisabeth Müller-Witt, deputy chairwoman of the SPD parliamentary group, said on Tuesday: “After the cost explosion, now there are allegations of corruption. The luxury renovation of the North Rhine-Westphalia State Chancellery by Prime Minister Hendrick Wüst is already costing citizens more than 50 million euros – a bottomless pit. ”
The SPD called on Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst and State Chancellor Nathanael Liminski (both CDU) to “immediately put everything on the table and quickly provide clarity.”
FDP: Why have control mechanisms failed?
“The fact that millions of dollars could have been embezzled during the restructuring of the State Chancellery casts a critical light on management and political supervision,” emphasized FDP parliamentary group leader Henning Höne. The Liberals called for “disclosure of all relevant information and an explanation as to why existing control mechanisms have failed.”
In fact, according to dpa information, the incident was noticed by the BLB’s internal audit department around two months ago. The company then called in the investigators.
A spokeswoman for the State Chancellery said in response to a dpa request: “The allegations in the room must be fully clarified. Of course, the State Chancellery as well as the entire state government will do everything possible to actively contribute to the clarification.” The spokeswoman emphasized: “There are currently no allegations of crimes against employees of the State Chancellery, nor have there been any searches in the State Chancellery, which is a tenant of the affected property.”
dpa
Source: Stern
