German authorities have filed indictments in two separate cases involving two married couples accused of stealing money and valuable items from public spaces. In Bavaria, a couple is on trial at the regional court in Kempten. In that case, the allegations involve prolonged theft of coins from municipal parking meters. The husband, a former employee of the Kempten municipality, is accused of stealing about 2 million euros over several years, allegedly with the assistance of his partner. The two have been in custody since November.
According to investigators, the husband’s job included emptying parking meters, and he had keys and access that allowed him to take the money. The couple allegedly transferred the coins to private bank accounts or converted them into shopping vouchers to conceal the source of the funds and make them easier to use.
The indictment includes 334 documented cases between 2020 and 2025 totaling 1.34 million euros. In addition, more than 500 cases from 2015 onward cannot be prosecuted due to the statute of limitations, but authorities are seeking to confiscate about 584,000 euros linked to them. In total, prosecutors are requesting the forfeiture of 1.9 million euros, according to the German newspaper Die Zeit.
In the second case, a separate couple allegedly carried out dozens of thefts of statues and other items from cemeteries across Germany. The suspects, a 68-year-old man and a 63-year-old woman, are expected to stand trial at the regional court in Berlin. According to the charges, between 2021 and 2025 they stole or illegally acquired art objects in 39 cases. The items include bronze statues, figures of Jesus, angels and at least one bell. The thefts were carried out in cemeteries and public parks in Berlin, as well as in Hamburg, Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania and Brandenburg, according to the newspaper Stern.
A 56-year-old man is also on trial in the same case on suspicion of receiving or trading in stolen goods on a commercial basis. Investigators say he purchased some of the stolen statues. Prosecutors argue the suspects operated in a systematic pattern targeting metal objects of religious and commemorative value, such as crosses, angel statues and bells, which are often found at graves and memorial sites. The investigation identified dozens of cases spanning several federal states.