The case of a 62-year-old teacher from Duisburg, who was on sick leave with full pay for 17 years, has caused significant outrage in Germany. The State Prosecutor's Office has filed an indictment against her, and the Regional Court (Landgericht) in Duisburg will decide whether it is accepted and whether proceedings will begin.
After completing her studies, the teacher began working at a vocational school in Wesel, in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. In 2009, she went on sick leave due to mental health issues, and medical certificates of incapacity for work were regularly renewed. Throughout these years, she received regular payments, including pay rises and compensation for unused annual leave. When a new principal took over the school in 2015, the teacher had long since stopped attending, and the principal told the German newspaper BILD that he had not even heard of her name until then.
In spring 2024, the case attracted the attention of school oversight authorities. Police and the State Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation and searched her apartment. A state prosecutor filed the indictment with the Grand Criminal Chamber of the Regional Court in Duisburg. Court spokesperson Felix Bachmann stated on Tuesday that there is sufficient reasonable suspicion against the accused for fraud in 11 aggravated cases and document forgery in two cases. The indictment thus covers 11 instances of fraud.
According to the investigation results, the damage alone in the period from March 2021 to March 2025 amounted to 248,000 euros. The earlier period of her absence from work can no longer be covered by criminal prosecution because those acts have become time-barred. Investigators suspect that the teacher submitted 10 certificates of temporary incapacity for work to her employer to conceal the fact that she was able to perform her job. In September 2025, when disciplinary proceedings had already been initiated against her, she allegedly submitted such documents again.
During the investigation, the suspicion that the teacher had worked as an alternative medicine practitioner while on sick leave was also examined, but investigators were unable to confirm this. It is also suspected that she herself produced two additional certificates of fitness for diving so that she could continue to pursue the sport during the period in which she was officially recorded as ill. According to the State Prosecutor's Office, the doctor named as the issuer of these documents does not exist.
During the investigation, the 62-year-old did not wish to comment on the case, and her lawyer acted in the same manner. She also did not make a statement to the police. Her transfer to retirement is currently being challenged in court. If convicted of fraud in aggravated cases, she faces a prison sentence of up to 10 years.
