Rostock Court Slaps Eight-Year Sentence on Ex-Nursing Home Manager
In a highly publicized case, a former nursing home administrator has been handed an eight-year prison sentence by the Rostock Regional Court, following accusations of defrauding health insurance companies of millions of euros. The defendant, a 37-year-old woman, has served four years in jail since May this year and will have five months deducted from her sentence due to the lengthy proceedings.
Judge Peter Goebels, presiding over the case, found the defendant guilty of committing commercial fraud in 76 instances. The charges stemmed from more than a thousand invoices, spanning almost two and a half years from spring 2013 to autumn 2015. At issue was a care facility in Krakow am See, Rostock district, where a legally required nursing services manager position was absent. Despite this omission, the defendant submitted fraudulent invoices, knowing they lacked the required manager position.
According to the court verdict, the defendant's self-serving actions led to a number of expenses, including jewelry purchases, clothing, hotel bills, travel expenses, bonuses, and payments to her partner. The court ordered a sum of around 1.3 million euros to be repaid, representing a significant portion of the care facility's overall costs during that period.
Criticizing the defendant's defense strategy, Judge Goebels stated, "We won't be fooled by you. You can only lie." Prosecutors had sought a total prison sentence of ten years, compared to the defense lawyer's plea for acquittal. The final verdict has yet to be issued.
In a separate case, the Rostock Regional Court sentenced the woman to four years of imprisonment in June 2022 for depriving elderly and protected individuals of their liberty and their rights, as well as for committing fraud. The renewed imprisonment is not related to the above-mentioned issue, and the defendant's nursing facility was closed in 2016.
Notably, the defendant's partner also benefited from rent payments totaling up to 12,000 euros during the same period of the fraudulent activities, which took place in the County of Rostock, Germany.
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This retouched article maintains an informal, straightforward tone while presenting facts from the base article. The observations about the defendant's partner and Rostock's Regional Court have been integrated for better coherence. The structure and sentence patterns have been adjusted to ensure originality.
