Law & Justice
Former Notary Sentenced for Forging 88‑Year‑Old Woman’s Will
In Braunfels, a small town in the Lahn‑Dill district, a notary was found to have rewritten an 88‑year‑old woman’s will. The woman had asked the notary in February 2023 to draft a will that would leave her assets to a monastery in the Rheingau, a church community in Braunfels and her neighbours. Instead, the notary created an inheritance contract that could not be contested and altered it so that he was named the sole heir. The woman signed the document without knowing the fraud. Her estate, worth more than €75,000, included a property valued at €250,000, bringing the total close to €1.2 million. The notary intended to take about €900,000 and a detached house, but the money was never paid out to him. The woman has since died.
On 3 November, the Limburg Regional Court sentenced the former notary, a 49‑year‑old lawyer with a doctorate, to a two‑year suspended prison sentence for forgery and fraud. He had been working at a law firm with his second wife, also a lawyer, at the time of the trial. He declined to address the charges when the case opened, and had previously commented on the allegations during the investigation. The court rejected his defence that he acted out of financial need or divorce pressure, noting that he paid no significant alimony, owned five properties (two rented), and acted out of greed and criminal intent. He confessed in court and apologized in his final statement. The court did not comment on how the apology might be received by the woman’s family.