Fraud fighters
In the worst case, Benko faces up to 20 years
René Benko has been under the scrutiny of the Public Prosecutor's Office for Economic Affairs and Corruption (WKStA) for years. Now a new front is opening up: The Anti-Fraud Office is investigating suspected financial fraud. A bitter pill for Benko: a possible penalty would be imposed in addition and increase the impending sentence to up to 20 years.
On December 10, René Benko will stand before the Innsbruck Regional Court again. The second trial is again about fraudulent crida, this time about a secret safe whose valuable contents (luxury watches, cufflinks, cash) are said to have been hidden from the billionaire bankrupt's creditors. Apart from this, the WKStA is investigating a dozen other cases on suspicion of embezzlement and serious fraud. Benko vehemently denies the allegations and the presumption of innocence applies.
The Austrian Criminal Code stipulates an upper limit even for the most serious property offenses, such as those of which Benko is accused: Even if the 48-year-old Tyrolean were to collect further convictions under the Criminal Code in the coming years, he would still face a maximum total of ten years in prison. This is in contrast to the USA, for example, where a financial fraudster like Bernie Madoff can even be sentenced to 150 years.
Special financial investigators
However, investigations into financial fraud have opened up a new, dangerous front for financial juggler Benko: according to research by "Krone" and "News", the Office for Combating Fraud has been investigating the speculator at full speed for months, away from the high-profile criminal proceedings. The special investigators of the Ministry of Finance have the powers of the criminal investigation department and are reportedly targeting the Benko foundations in particular.
A bitter pill for Benko: possible convictions under the Financial Crimes Act are not included in any penalties for property offenses. This means that financial fraud is also punishable by up to ten years in prison. And imprisonment in the event of a conviction for financial fraud would be imposed in addition to convictions for fraud, criminal offences and breach of trust - without the ten-year cap in the Criminal Code. In the worst case scenario, Benko could therefore face a total of up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
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