Dusseldorf Markus Braun once lived in luxury, today he lives in a nine square meter cell in the Munich-Stadelheim correctional facility. His company Wirecard is bankrupt and Braun is accused of gang fraud, embezzlement and other criminal offenses.
For a long time he shrouded himself in silence. At the Wirecard investigation committee, the long-time Wirecard boss did not reveal more than his personal details. His lawyer Alfred Dierlamm criticized the public prosecutor’s office for months: the charges were so poorly founded that the court should not even admit them. But she was admitted.
Braun has had to answer in court since December 2022. He is sitting in the dock in a high-security room at the Munich Regional Court, five meters below ground. Braun has had the floor since February 14, 2023. Our Handelsblatt reporters observe his every move and every look.
Braun pretends to be a victim. He neither cheated anyone nor manipulated the Wirecard course. He simply didn’t know anything about any possible criminal acts, whether by the confessed co-defendant Oliver Bellenhaus or the fugitive ex-CEO Jan Marsalek. In this episode, our court reporters René Bender and Vinzenz Neumaier describe why Braun’s defense is now coming under heavy pressure.
Handelsblatt Crime appears every 14 days and can be heard wherever there are podcasts.
More: You can hear the previous episode of Handelsblatt Crime here