At the request of the APA, the public prosecutor’s office in Linz confirmed investigations into the suspected forger of trademarks and stamps. However, the process is not yet complete. According to the report, 264 documents were found during a search of the Mühlviertler, who confessed according to the report. As a template, the suspect apparently took envelopes from companies in Wiener Neustadt and Vienna, on which he had forged stamps, receipts and cancellations at least since 2017. In total, the alleged fraudster may have swindled around 114,000 euros from collectors in this way.
A man from the Hausruckviertel is also being investigated on suspicion of fraud, the Upper Austrian police confirmed another case of possible forgery. The suspect is said to have sold Christmas letters from the years 1950 to 1954, which are said to have come from the Christkindl post office, to collectors. Because of the ongoing process, however, no further details can be given.
Since 1950, postal items from all over the world have been arriving at the Christmas post office Christkindl in the district of the same name in Steyr, meanwhile there are more than two million per season. If Christmas cards are franked with the additional stamp “via Postamt Christkindl” in addition to the normal postage, the shipment will be diverted and stamped with holiday motifs in the place of pilgrimage.
Source: Nachrichten
