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The 1st Criminal Division of the Federal Court of Justice has set aside the judgment of the Augsburg Regional Court of January 16, 2015 and referred the case to a different criminal division of the Regional Court for a new hearing and decision.
Marcus Prinz von Anhalt was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment for tax evasion on January 16, 2015. He successfully defended himself against this by filing an appeal. Prince von Anhalt always rejected a deal with the public prosecutor’s office, because in his opinion he had not committed a crime. The proceedings are exclusively concerned with the assertion of motor vehicle costs for tax purposes. The other criminal tax charges have already been dropped.
After 704 days in pre-trial detention and months of decision-making, the Federal Supreme Court has now overturned the Augsburg Regional Court’s verdict. There will be a new hearing, but this time before a different chamber of the court of first instance.
Prince von Anhalt commented: “I have been unjustly imprisoned for two years. I was given a criminal conviction in Augsburg, even though the actual tax proceedings are still far from being concluded. From my point of view, this is pure arbitrariness. A scandal!”
Mainz defense attorney Olaf Langhanki, who represented von Anhalt before the BGH, commented on the decision: “We were always convinced that the Augsburg verdict could not stand. Prince von Anhalt never gave up in the fight for his rights. It is all the more gratifying that the BGH has now overturned the judgment and ordered a new trial.”
Marcus Prinz von Anhalt will now also file a new appeal against imprisonment. He hopes to be released from pre-trial detention in the short term and also to finally be able to see his daughter again soon.
