Wrong Sternsinger in Vechta: Examined with children!

in Vechta, Lower Saxony, an incident with false star singers causes excitement. A 39-year-old is accused of collecting money and sweets on front doors while not introducing herself as part of an official star singing group. The police initiated criminal proceedings for fraud against the woman. The incident was reported by a 50-year-old who was on behalf of a parish with a real star singing group and filed a complaint.

The accused stated that they wanted to use the collected donations for a local hospital. She was on the road with her two daughters and another child and did not present herself and her children as a star singer. In a conversation with the police, she later apologized and offered to return the collected amounts of money and sweets. They had apparently taken them through the sale of sweets.

further incidents and warnings

The police inspection Cloppenburg/Vechta now warns of further fraud attempts of this type. Similar incidents were also reported in Lüdenscheid, North Rhine-Westphalia, where a 68-year-old complaint was filed against three disguised children and a young person who were on his doorstep. There, too, there were inquiries about the correctness of the collection, since the man found the cladding unusual.

The police emphasize that despite the general permission to collect donations, it is crucial that collectors become recognizable as legitimate representatives. It is advised to ask for an ID to ensure that it is authentic star singers.

The campaign, which traditionally takes place around the Epiphany Festival on January 6, collects donations for children in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe with the motto "Remove your voice! Stern singing for children's rights". Around 300,000 children and adolescents in Germany are involved in this campaign, which is supported by the children's mission work "Die Sternsinger" and the Federation of German Catholic Youth (BDKJ).