In March 2020, the Bavarian authorities bought FFP2 masks from the Swiss company Emix. The Munich Prosecutor’s Office is investigating the matter. German media reported that he would check whether it was purchased at inflated prices and whether the taxpayers’ money was improperly managed.

According to the newspaper “Suddeutsche Zeitung”, investigators from the prosecution office appeared on Wednesday at the headquarters of the Bavarian Ministry of Health.

The prosecution based its proceedings on art. 266 of the German Criminal Code, which deals with the management of taxpayer money.

The case was taken over at the request of SPD MP Florian von Braun.

The deal with Bavaria was to be brokered by the “Little Penguin” company owned by the daughter of former CSU politician Andrea Tandler, who was also to conclude similar agreements with the federal government and the North Rhine-Westphalia authorities. It is estimated that her company has earned between 34 to 51 million euros in commissions ranging from 5 to 7.5 per cent, depending on the contract.

In total, the volume of requests from Emix from the central, Bavarian and Westphalian authorities amounted to more than 683 million euros. The federal government would have paid 5.58 euros for the mask, Bavaria – 8.90, and as reported by German media – North Rhine-Westphalia, which ordered 527,200 masks, paid 9.90 euros per head.

“A portion of the overpriced money paid from taxpayers’ money was transferred to Mrs. Tadler as a brokerage fee,” Brown said.

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