A German banker has drawn a suspended sentence for transferring $11.5 million from wealthy account holders to those of poorer ones, her attorney says.
By United Press International More from this author
November 25, 2009
BONN, Germany, Nov. 25 (UPI) -- A German banker has drawn a suspended sentence for transferring $11.5 million from wealthy account holders to those of poorer ones, her attorney says.
Attorney Thomas Ohm said his unidentified client, dubbed "Die Robin Hood Bankerin," was given a 22-month suspended sentence by a Bonn court for making the unauthorized transfers between 2003 and 2005, keeping none for herself, the British newspaper The Guardian reported Wednesday.
"The accused hasn't put 1 cent in her own pocket," Ohm told the newspaper. "She did it purely out of sympathy with people who were suffering financially."
The banker, Ohm said, was a "good samaritan" akin to the Bertolt Brecht character Mother Courage, who believes she can do good in a bad world.
Prosecutors reportedly accused the employee of allowing overdrafts for customers not qualified for them and using money from richer customers' accounts to temporarily cover them during the bank's monthly audits.
The Guardian said German broadcaster WDR reported that the banker, who worked in a small, rural branch, knew most of the bank's clients and had discovered that many of its richer account holders had not touched their money in years.
Copyright 2009 by United Press International. All rights reserved.
http://www.banktech.com/risk-management/showArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=KQPXYLE0NZLN1QE1GHRSKHWATMY32JVN?articleID=221901594
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Albeit she used her heart in lieu of her head. I cannot fathom why she did not expect to get caught after such acts. Kind-hearted, yes (in theory) but stupd in practicality.
ReplyDeleteNo matter how rich someone is, their wealth is their own, not to be distributed among less fortunate people without their knowledge and approval. Had the bank customers granted permission to the banker to "spread the wealth" it would be a different story.
It is in fact theft, by the banker and unfortunately even by the unknowing customers who received the stolen money. It is a shame that they were put in this position.
I am actually shocked that the sentence was suspended as it truly is theft by deception in no uncertain terms.