
Tuesday, 17 December
Berlin corona test scammer sentenced to prison
A 39-year-old Berlin entrepreneur has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison for a massive corona test scam. The man, who ran several test centers in the city, billed the health insurance association for significantly more tests than were actually conducted. The fraudulent scheme netted the scammer nearly €4 million.
He operated four test centres through a bogus company, with a figurehead acting as managing director under a false Italian identity. While confessing his guilt, the businessman – who says he works in the construction and real estate industry – admitted he had found himself in a financially difficult situation due to gambling losses.
He came up with the idea of running scams through corona testing centres after “word had gotten around that the Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians was not checking the numbers properly.”