2024-08-22 23:47:06
Charges have been brought against former Berlin Health Senator Dilek Kalayci. The Berlin public prosecutor’s office accuses the SPD politician of bribery.
The public prosecutor’s office has filed charges against Berlin’s former health senator Dilek Kalayci (SPD) for bribery. A co-defendant is the owner of an advertising agency, a spokesman for the Berlin public prosecutor’s office announced. The prosecution accuses the 58-year-old of bribery. The “Tagesspiegel” had previously reported.
Kalayci herself did not comment on the incident. However, a law firm she hired stated in response to a request from the German Press Agency that the ex-senator emphatically denied the accusation made against her. “In my opinion, the extensive investigations have not confirmed the accusation either,” said lawyer Robert Unger.
According to the investigation, the advertising agency man and the politician agreed in spring 2019 that his agency would take over the planning and organization of Kalayci’s wedding celebration. However, according to the indictment, the former senator was never billed for the services. The public prosecutor assumes that she did not have to pay because she had foreseeably promised the agency contracts from the Senate.
The ex-senator is said not to have asked for an invoice. Instead, according to the indictment, after the wedding the company was commissioned by the health administration to carry out an advertising campaign aimed at recruiting young people for nursing.
The agency received 267,830 euros for this. According to the prosecution, after deducting the costs for the campaign, the company was left with around 7,400 euros, while the co-defendant owner is said to have received around 9,450 euros. The services for Kalayci’s wedding are said to have amounted to around 11,240 euros.
Kalayci’s lawyer explained: “She assures us that until she became aware of the allegation, she always assumed that the advertising agency’s services had been properly billed and paid for in full.” His client had no knowledge that there was an unbilled service, nor would she have accepted such a thing, continued lawyer Unger. “Ms. Kalayci also never violated her official duties,” continued Unger.
If the public prosecutor’s office has its way, the case will go to trial in Berlin’s regional court. A criminal chamber must now examine whether it shares the prosecution’s view and accepts the charges. The presumption of innocence applies until the proceedings have been concluded with legal effect.