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Scandal in Göttingen: Social security fraud exposed on Groner Landstrasse!
City of Göttingen is investigating allegations of social benefit fraud in the Groner Landstrasse 9 residential complex; internal audit shows no evidence.
Scandal in Göttingen: Social security fraud exposed on Groner Landstrasse!
There is a sensitive issue at Groner Landstrasse 9 in Göttingen: the accusation of social security fraud. The city has now decided to get to the bottom of the matter. However, there was an official announcement that the allegations could not be substantiated. According to the report by Göttingen.de The city examined the situation internally and found that out of a total of 129 communities for which the Göttingen job center is responsible, 98 had the rent transferred directly to the landlord. For 31 tenants, the money goes to them and then, if necessary, passed on to the landlords.
A statement from the property owners' administration, which reports high rent arrears, sheds some light on the matter. The city interprets these as a strategic element to potentially create a basis for legitimacy for a non-functioning heating system. The city has agreed with the WEG administration that the heat supply must be maintained until the end of the heating season. Otherwise, individuals could be held liable for the outstanding invoices.
Rent debts and heating issues
The conditions in the prefabricated building are anything but rosy. According to that World Broken windows, defective toilets and rats are commonplace, and the landlord Sebastian Fesser reports over 50 apartments in a dilapidated condition. There could be a reason for the problems here: It is suspected that some tenants did not pass on the money they received from the job center to their landlords. The debts are increasing immeasurably - some estimates speak of over 854,000 euros in unpaid rent from the last two years.
According to Dominik Fricke, managing director of the property management company “Coeles Group”, a quarter of the tenants may have gained a further advantage with a declaration of assignment. This could lead to extremely high residues. And this is not only a problem for the city, but also regularly pushes the police and fire departments to the limit of their capacity.
A way forward?
The specialist lawyer for criminal law, Sascha Böttner, sees the need for a change in the law in this context. He suggests that in future the rent be transferred directly from the authorities to the landlords. Such a measure could prevent the declaration of assignment from being so carelessly misused.
The situation puts a lot of strain on the relationship between the tenants, the job center representatives and the property managers. Apart from the financial aspects, the misery also affects the quality of life of the residents, who have to deal with the effects of the grievances on a daily basis. Requiring the property management to get the heating running again on time is only a small step towards improving living conditions on site.
The city of Göttingen will continue to monitor the situation as the residents of Groner Landstrasse are drawn into this unpleasant situation. It is all the more important that the dialogue between those involved is maintained in order to find a solution as quickly as possible.