A former senior public prosecutor in Cologne, Anne Brorhilker, has delivered a scathing critique of Germany’s efforts to combat financial crime, alleging systemic failings and a lack of political will that render the nation a haven for economic offenders. In an interview with the Handelsblatt and detailed within her forthcoming book, Brorhilker, who resigned from her position in April 2024, paints a picture of a justice system ill-equipped to handle complex, multi-million euro cases like the sprawling Cum-Ex affair, which she spearheaded.
Brorhilker argues that Germany’s prosecution of economic crime is unusually facile, citing deeply ingrained structural problems within the judicial apparatus. A key issue she highlights is the constant shuffling of personnel between departments, a practice she describes as destabilizing, robbing investigators of the necessary continuity and expertise to build robust cases. She asserts that Cum-Ex proceedings, characterized by their immense scope and intricate financial maneuvers, are atypical precisely because they demand a prolonged and specialized learning curve – a requirement consistently undermined by the transient nature of investigative teams.
Her criticism extends sharply to the political sphere. Brorhilker claims a persistent shortage of engaged ministers, observing a noticeable lack of interest in the Cum-Ex investigations over a prolonged period. She accuses the justice system of prioritizing quantifiable statistics and swift case closures, rather than investing in the long-term pursuit of intricate financial crimes. This skewed prioritization, she contends, results in a disproportionate allocation of resources, with greater personnel dedicated to less financially impactful offenses like petty theft and drug dealing compared to cases involving staggering sums of misappropriated funds.
“For thefts from shops, drug dealers and so forth, there is much more personnel than for cases involving many millions of euros” Brorhilker stated. This disparity, she argues, contributes directly to Germany’s perceived attractiveness for financial criminality.
As a direct consequence, Brorhilker advocates for the creation of a centralized and independent federal agency dedicated to the prosecution of international tax evasion and money laundering. This proposed entity, she insists, must be lean, highly specialized and politically insulated to break free from the existing, demonstrably inadequate structures. Without such a radical reform, she warns, the state risks remaining trapped within a system that actively facilitates, rather than prevents, financial wrongdoing. The pronouncements raise serious questions regarding the efficacy of Germany’s handling of economic crime and demand a critical re-evaluation of the priorities within the justice system.