A 65-year-old lawyer from Wiesmoor not only acted as a defense attorney, but also appeared before the courts in his capacity as a defendant. The Aurich and Oldenburg regional courts had to deal with the charges against the Wiesmoor resident for incitement to give false testimony and obstruction of justice three times in total. The defendant had repeatedly successfully appealed. The Federal Court of Justice (BGH) initially referred the case back to the Aurich regional court and most recently to the Oldenburg regional court.
The guilty verdict remained untouched from the beginning and became legally binding during the first appeal. The BGH also saw the lawyer’s persuasion of a witness to give false testimony in a trial before the Aurich District Court in 2019. In this way, the Wiesmoor resident achieved his goal of having the defendant he was defending acquitted.
In all new editions of the case, the only issue was the sentence. The Karlsruhe judges warned that when determining the sentence, the chambers had to take into account that the lawyer could also face professional consequences. Ultimately, the Oldenburg Regional Court reduced the suspended sentence of one year and six months originally imposed by the Aurich Regional Court by three months. The Federal Court of Justice confirmed this ruling in a ruling dated February 5. The case is now legally concluded.
And what about the professional consequences? “The Oldenburg Public Prosecutor’s Office initiated measures in November last year,” said senior public prosecutor Nicole Töller, spokeswoman for the Oldenburg Public Prosecutor’s Office, when asked. The authority drew up a statement of charges and forwarded it to the Bar Court. The Public Prosecutor’s Office accuses the Wiesmoor lawyer of not carrying out his job conscientiously and of violating his duties. The aim, according to the press spokeswoman, is to exclude the 65-year-old Wiesmoor resident from the legal profession.
The Bar Court must decide. This is a completely autonomous court made up of judges and lawyers. However, after ten months, a decision has still not been made. “Unfortunately, I cannot provide any information about pending proceedings,” said Jan Kramer, President of the Oldenburg Bar Association. It is therefore unclear how far the proceedings have progressed. “But we ourselves are interested in keeping our shop clean,” added Jan Kramer.
While the 65-year-old Wiesmoor resident still appears as a lawyer on the list of the Federal Bar Association, he is once again in the dock. Since June 13, a trial for serious commercial fraud has been underway at the Oldenburg Regional Court against several defendants. The damages are said to amount to more than 1.8 million euros.
The Wiesmoor lawyer is accused of aiding and abetting serious fraud and money laundering in eight cases. He is said to have made his account available for transfers from the defrauded investors and forwarded the incoming funds to the defendants in return for a commission of two percent.
The verdict against the main defendants is due to be pronounced next Friday. They are said to have agreed to a plea bargain, made confessions and in the process incriminated the 65-year-old lawyer. Undeterred by this, the Wiesmoor resident continues to deny the allegations. The proceedings against him have therefore been separated and will continue.
