Remmo, Miri, Abu-Chaker: these are probably the first names that come to mind for those familiar with criminal clans in Germany. Munich is far from the situations seen in Bremen or Berlin, where clans operate almost as a parallel state. However, a shadow reality of organized criminal groups exists in the Bavarian capital as well. “Organized large families,” as Hans-Peter Chlopeck, head of Police Commissioner’s Office 33 for Organized Crime, called them at the third True Crime evening organized by the tz newspaper. Their names are known to the police. “Intensive investigations are ongoing,” the commissioner noted.
Criminal Large Families Defraud Job Centers and Operate in the Car Trade
He described to 230 visitors in the sold-out ‘Alten Rotation’ hall of the publishing house how, a few years ago, they managed to get on the trail of one of these clans’ activities. It started with a relatively innocuous case of an elderly woman and her two grandchildren caught shoplifting.
The police officer assigned to the case became suspicious. “She obtained a search warrant” and hit the jackpot. During the raid, police found rooms stuffed to the brim, which, according to Chlopeck, resembled a warehouse for a perfume store chain. The apartment was packed with stolen goods; confiscating everything took several hours.
Clan Structure: Up to 30 Members Live in One House
Professional theft is just one of the “business areas” of these families, where sometimes 20–30 people live in a single house. Many members have filed claims with the job center and receive social benefits, the investigator explained. By providing false information, the clans allegedly swindle enormous sums from the state. And this while living a lavish lifestyle! “This is quite openly displayed on social media platforms,” Chlopeck explained, referring to the genuine life of luxury led by these benefit recipients.
Large Families Flaunt Luxury Online
For example, during a ski vacation in Kitzbühel. Instagram posts show women in expensive fur coats in front of extravagant hotels. Men like to pose in front of family cars like Lamborghinis or Bentleys. Photos from children’s birthday parties look as though the toddlers are playing with large bundles of cash. The goal of such behavior: to emphasize their own status to other families!
The clans, some of which originally hail from Romania, don’t just make money from fraudulently obtained benefits. Police investigations show that women run online dating scams. In these “love scams,” they so thoroughly charm men over the computer or phone that the men believe they are in a real relationship—and later transfer money.
Deception Tricks in the Car Trade
However, the primary source of income is car fraud: clan members buy cars, often from elderly people. During the personal meeting, a trick is used. “They claim there is supposedly oil in the coolant,” explained Chlopeck. By arguing this indicates engine damage, the scammers drastically lower the car’s price. Elderly people, particularly those happy to make a deal due to the complicated process, often agree anyway. The cheaply acquired car is then soon resold at a high price.
Incidentally, family gangs and their members who operate this way in Munich are scattered across the entire city and are not confined to a single district. Moosach, Allach, and also Bogenhausen are all on the investigators’ radar.
The complexity of such cases lies in the fact that the crimes cut across multiple jurisdictions. “This involves the police, the public prosecutor’s office, customs, the tax office, the job center, and the immigration office,” noted expert Chlopeck.
Source: tz
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