Journey or relocation from one place to another - Inquiry into Reul's connections with a suspected human trafficking ring leader.
In relation to investigations into the penetration of affluent foreigners in Germany, a key politician finds himself under scrutiny on Tuesday (8:30 am): North Rhine-Westphalia's Interior Minister Herbert Reul (CDU) will be quizzed by the Interior Committee of the Düsseldorf State Parliament.
Reul himself admitted to having met with a lawyer from the Cologne region, accused of being the head of a smuggling ring, on numerous occasions, and who was locked up on remand at various times. The accused had backed Reul's CDU campaign in the Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis in 2022 with almost 30,000 euros. He has confirmed this to the "Cologne City Anzeiger".
Their first encounter was on February 18, 2022 at the Interior Ministry with the lawyer, who is an active CDU member. The lawyer reached out to Reul, as he wanted to help the party and the CDU in the state election campaign, claimed the minister. In the ensuing encounters, they mainly dined with business representatives and honorary members, during which they discussed matters of internal security. On September 29, 2022, the topic of party political issues was discussed at the Interior Ministry.
Speaking to the "Cologne City Anzeiger", the 71-year-old Reul asserted that the lawyer gave off a conservative and religiously influenced vibe. "[I] never imagined that he could be involved in something illegal," he told the paper. Thus, he had "no qualms" about the party accepting the incoming donations.
The alleged smuggling outfit has been accused of obtaining residence permits for wealthy folks from China and Oman for a number of years. In April, law enforcement agencies carried out searches in eight federal states in relation to this investigation. The police suspect that the accused smugglers could have bribed officials in different authorities to secure permits for their high-rolling clients from abroad. The investigations had been in progress since 2020, with offenses allegedly occurring in 2016/2017.
The Düsseldorf Public Prosecutor's Office also has its eye on the Düren District Administrator Wolfgang Spelthahn, who is being probed for bribery, but hasn't issued any specific details. Spelthahn maintains that he harbors no regrets and is determined to clear his name.
The Public Prosecutor's Office is currently probing 58 suspects and 147 individuals purportedly favored with illegal residence permits via the smugglers. Three suspects are still in pre-trial detention, while the remaining are under supervision.
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Source: www.stern.de
