The lawyer of former head of Bremen branch of Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) has rejected accusations levelled by authorities and politicians against his client. At same time, he himself accuses superior of Ulrike B. 's omissions. It is not a fact that "those who are called to care, namely ir superiors to minister, now raise accusations without having granted ir legal hearing," said lawyer Erich Joester Radio Bremen, NDR and south German Zeitung.

The prosecutor's office investigates against former director and against five or accused persons for bribery and gang-related indirection to abusive application for asylum. In Bremen, between 2013 and 2016, up to 1,200 people should have been granted asylum without this being justified. The branch office must refore not take any furr asylum decisions for time being. The former director himself had defended her behaviour and stressed that she had acted for humanitarian reasons. At same time she had criticized peak. There it was only about case numbers and processing times. In fact, authority was exposed to a high working pressure of 2015/2016 and had also hired many employees.

B. S lawyer said it was unclear wher his client had chosen all 1,200 cases personally. It is not yet foreseeable for him wher and when it will come to a procedure. "If, n, it will be a very long process," said Joester. Because each case is different and must be considered accordingly. His client never accepted money, lawyer assured. The accusation of corruption is nonsense. Neir did she accept any advantages, nor did she have to pay money to lawyers who had specifically brought asylum seekers to Bremen. The procedures were transferred to Bremen for reasons of overload of or branch offices and with knowledge of headquarters of bamf in Nuremberg.

At least partially responsible

The accusation raised by internal auditors of bamf that former head of Bremen branch had disregarded four-eyes principle in ir decisions, lawyer called a piece from Madhouse. The four-eyes principle had only been put into effect on 1 September 2017. However, audited cases relate to period from March 2013 to August 2017. "How can you accuse someone of having disobeyed a rule if this rule has not yet existed?" said lawyer.

B. is also accused of having worked with a lawyer from Hildesheim and unlawfully issued asylum notices. Also lawyer of this suspect now rejected accusation that branch office in Bremen was not allowed to work on many asylum applications. There was a decree of headquarters in Nuremberg, according to which Bremen branch office – at least temporarily – was also responsible for processing of asylum applications from parts of Lower Saxony.

The bamf and Federal Ministry would not have responded to inquiries on this, research group reported. The Bundestag committee is currently involved in bamf. FDP and AfD both aspire to a committee of inquiry in Parliament to work out failures of federal government in refugee crisis.

Date Of Update: 02 June 2018, 12:03