By Anne Losensky
You could also have used overpriced branded kitchens. But the fraudsters chose IKEA and bought fitted kitchens all over Germany – without the intention of paying for them.
Regional court, room 700. Only the boss is behind bars: Mita V. (40). He is Serbian, his wife Dajana (33) and brother-in-law Milan (31) have passports from Bosnia-Herzegovina. Two Germans (57, 24) are accused of being helpers. The allegations: fraud, forgery, receiving stolen property.
It’s about ordering goods over the Internet using hacked customer accounts and stolen bank cards as well as fake Austrian and Dutch IDs.
The alleged gang boss is said to have obtained over 150,000 euros! According to the indictment, these included expensive cell phones (easily sold). But also everything else you need in life: gas stove, washer-dryer, children’s bike, perfume, shopping in supermarkets and hardware stores, fast food at McDonald’s, pet food, even BVG tickets.
According to the indictment, from March 2022 onwards, head of the Mita family switched to IKEA fitted kitchens, picked up by van. 21 cases have been indicted (Berlin, Kiel, Lübeck, Magdeburg, Braunschweig).
On May 4, 2022, the police caught her red-handed in Bielefeld (North Rhine-Westphalia). But that didn’t stop the criminal family business from continuing at Media Markt and Saturn.
The court offers Boss Mita a maximum of 6 years in prison if he confesses everything. Rejected: “I want a perspective, I have a wife and children!”
The charges are just the tip of the iceberg. Further proceedings against the couple have been temporarily discontinued. Verdict on October 25th.