FPÖ expenses affair: Diversion in the trial against Strache’s ex-driver

In the course of the Straches expenses affair, the man stated that he had received an order to declare private invoices as professional expenses using fictitious receipts. However, he never did this. He then took responsibility at the regional court for criminal matters.

The affair became public in September 2019, a few days before the National Council election. The basis was an anonymous complaint. Strache is suspected of having financed his private life to a large extent with party money since he took over as party chairman in 2006 until the end of May 2019, in that he and former employees are said to have declared his private invoices as professional expenses using fictitious receipts. Strache rejects the allegations. In addition to Strache, other FPÖ representatives are also being investigated. A ruling by the Vienna Higher Regional Court (OLG) recently showed that, according to investigators, the total damage was likely to amount to at least 1.032 million euros.

Strache’s former employee was initially a witness and testified against his boss when the expenses affair became known. He therefore presented the investigators with invoices as evidence, among other things. According to reports, two of them are now being used against him. During the course of the investigation it was said to have been established that they were not assigned to Strache, but to the ex-driver. These are said to be restaurant bills amounting to around 500 euros.

“Yes, it all happened logically, but not with any malicious intent, not to enrich myself”, the man in court then took responsibility for the conversions. The court therefore accepted the defendant’s suggestion of diversion. Strache’s former driver therefore now has to pay 6,600 euros in installments as well as procedural costs of 200 euros. It was decided to temporarily discontinue the proceedings until payment was made. The public prosecutor’s office made no statement and the decision is therefore not legally binding.

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