Of the 90 debtors of € 284 million in fine orders issued in the Auditor General's recent report, few ended up in prison last year. A survey by "F" revealed that the majority of them were unemployed, recipients of public assistance, potters, farmers, stockbreeders, carpenters, taxi drivers and builders. Not a single prominent citizen, whether politically exposed or publicly prominent, or at least those who owe more than 100 thousand euros in warrants, was imprisoned for not paying his debts.
In 2020, a total of 110 people ended up in the Central Prison for debts, the majority of which were up to five thousand euros. From the data we collected, it seems that 26 people were imprisoned because they owed debts from 200 to a thousand euros, 38 people up to two thousand euros, and for 65 people their debts were up to five thousand.
Typical was the case of a public benefit recipient, who was arrested and imprisoned for € 214, at a time when there are hundreds of people with debts of thousands of euros or even millions. A blacksmith ended up in prison for unpaid bills for € 2.800, while an unemployed man spent some time in the wards of detainees for not paying debts to the state amounting to € 500, while a second unemployed person also had the same luck for debts just € 300.
From the information we found, it appeared that out of the 110 warrants that were imprisoned, only one owed a respectable amount that reached 60 thousand euros. It is noted that all of them ended up in the Central at a time when the country was dominated by the pandemic, with prolonged lockdowns, where the majority of the world lived on the benefits of the Ministry of Labor and wages had shrunk. It could, as reported to "F" by relatives of persons imprisoned for debts, when they were found by the Police to make arrangements for installment payments and not end up in prison as ordinary criminals.
It is noted that according to the report of the Audit Service, 131 warrants with a total value of € 254.580, concern politically exposed persons, their close relatives or companies directly related to them. In fact, four are deputies. Also, 270 warrants with a total value of € 237.582, concern persons who are related to the administration of justice.
philenews.com