An employee at an events farm collects wedding deposits and gambles the money away on sports bets. Now he has been convicted.
Bochum (dpa / lnw) - After a series of wedding scams, a former employee of an event farm in Waltrop in the Recklinghausen district was sentenced to four and a half years in prison on Wednesday. The 35-year-old had received high deposits for planned celebrations from newlyweds and then gambled away the money in sports betting. According to the verdict, 63 bridal couples were affected. The total damage amounts to almost 225,000 euros. In the trial at the Bochum district court, the accused made a comprehensive confession.
Judge Michael Rehaag described the 35-year-old as a "notorious liar". The accused had repeatedly succeeded in wrapping other people around his finger. There was no way for those affected to see through the fraud.
According to the verdict, some bridal couples had even paid significantly higher amounts than originally agreed. In the process there was talk of up to 10,000 euros. "You have shown yourself generous to support the court in the Corona period," said the judge.
The accused had received a permanent position at the event farm in early 2020. A few months later he is said to have not forwarded money from bridal couples for the first time. In the meantime, the farm operators are said to have reached an agreement with almost all those affected.
According to the verdict, the background to the series of frauds is the gambling addiction of the accused, who has a relevant criminal record.
