With the establishment of the Social Services Fraud Taskforce “SOLBE” in 2019, the focus of Lower Austrian investigators has increasingly shifted to illegal acts. Since then, the State Criminal Police Office has identified a loss of almost four million euros, it said on Saturday. Numerous people have been reported, so far there have been several convictions. Unjustified receipt of unemployment benefits and needs-based minimum income were discovered several times.
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Furthermore, frauds in connection with short-time work and sick pay as well as the unjustified receipt of emergency aid were on the investigation program. “Such acts of fraud have so far only come into the focus of the criminal police in exceptional cases,” a broadcast looked back. The cooperation between the police and the financial police, coordinated by the Federal Criminal Police Office, with paying agencies such as the AMS and the pension insurance institution has now made the institutions “aware of suspicious circumstances”. The joint work will be “continued in a targeted manner”, it was emphasized.
“Social fraud is a fraud against all people who support and guarantee the system through their contributions,” said Interior Minister Karl Nehammer (ÖVP). He emphasized the importance and optimal networking of the task force taken over by the police on July 1, 2020. In addition, an inter-ministerial steering group was set up, in which the interior, justice, finance and social ministries are involved.
