Airport News

German authorities on Tuesday arrested three people, including a former senior manager of Frankfurt airport operator Fraport, on suspicion of having accepted bribes for building permits at the airport.

The Frankfurt prosecutor's office said more than 200 police raided addresses across Germany and the Alpine principality of Liechtenstein, where they suspect the funds were hidden, as part of an investigation into 10 people suspected of bribery, embezzlement, fraud, money laundering and tax evasion.

As is customary in Germany, none were named.

Prosecutors said they suspected the 50-year-old former senior manager of taking payments from companies wanting to build at the Cargo City South freight hub at Frankfurt airport.

The site, opened in 1996, is home to the operations of at least two dozen freight companies, including Lufthansa Cargo, DHL and UPS.

The former Fraport manager funnelled about EUR€630,000 (USD$810,500) worth of bribes to a Liechtenstein bank account via fake invoices sent to a real estate agent in Frankfurt by a Liechtenstein-based suspect.

Both the real estate agent and the Liechtenstein-based agent were also arrested on Tuesday, the prosecutor's office said.

A spokesman for Fraport said the former manager had damaged the company. He said Fraport was working closely with investigators to clear up the case.

Germany has long been trying to crack down on tax evasion via secret bank accounts in countries such as Liechtenstein and Switzerland.

EU finance ministers gave the European Commission the go-ahead in May to negotiate with Switzerland, Liechtenstein, San Marino, Andorra and Monaco to expand the kind of client information banks must provide to tax authorities.