House search at René Benko’s luxury villa
Published: Tuesday, Jun 25th 2024, 12:20
العودة إلى البث المباشر
Austrian investigators have the Signa founder in their sights. The ex-billionaire is under suspicion for alleged loan fraud and bribery. Benko's property and offices were searched.
The Economic and Corruption Prosecutor's Office (WKStA) searched the Signa founder's villa in Innsbruck on Tuesday. The purpose of the operation was to "seize any documents and objects relating to the allegations that have already been reported in the media", Benko's lawyer told the German Press Agency.
The lawyer described the work of the public prosecutor's office and police as "very professional". Benko behaved "cooperatively and constructively", said the lawyer.
The headquarters of Signa Holding in Innsbruck were also examined on Tuesday, according to the insolvency administrator of the holding company, Christof Stapf. Together with experts, he had already begun securing the necessary data in December and was working closely with the authorities, he told dpa when asked.
Fraud and bribery
The WKStA is investigating the founder of the insolvent real estate and trading group Signa in various suspected cases: On the one hand, an investigation is underway into alleged loan fraud. This involves the suspicion that solvency was feigned when loans were extended.
On the other hand, the public prosecutor's office is investigating whether the 47-year-old former billionaire had attempted to bribe a high-ranking Austrian tax official. Benko's lawyers have denied all allegations. Neither the lawyer nor the WKStA wanted to say whether one or both of these aspects were the focus of the search.
The Signa Group, which was built up by Benko and recently collapsed, with numerous department stores in Germany and Switzerland, is in insolvency proceedings. Many stores have been or are being sold to pay off debts amounting to billions.
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