Prosecutors charge woman teacher on sick leave since 2009 with fraud over 248,000 euros

The charges

The prosecutor's office in Duisburg announced on Tuesday, 27 October 2026, that it has indicted a woman teacher who has been on sick leave for about 17 years. Prosecutors allege she obtained about 248,000 euros in pay to which she was not entitled. Tagesspiegel reported that the indictment lists particularly serious fraud in eleven cases alongside forgery of documents, while other outlets described fraud and forgery without that count. The indictment covers only March 2021 to March 2025, because allegations from earlier years are time-barred. The woman has not yet commented on the allegations, and the presumption of innocence applies.

Ten sick notes and a long absence

According to prosecutors, the teacher last taught in 2009 at a vocational college in Wesel, yet kept receiving her salary through a run of medical sick notes. Prosecutors say she submitted ten incapacity certificates to her school between March 2021 and March 2025 while knowing she was fit to work. RP Online, citing judicial sources, reported that the woman is 62 years old and that the case became public last year after a new case officer at the district government had the file reviewed and sent her to an official doctor. She challenged that step in court and lost. The state did not demand an examination by an official doctor during the long absence, which could have assessed whether she could keep working.

Diving certificates and the parallel-work probe

Prosecutors allege that, as an active diver, she issued two diving fitness certificates herself under the name of a doctor who does not exist. Investigators searched her flat in March 2026 and found indications that she knowingly gave the state, as her employer, false information. They also checked reports that she worked as a Heilpraktikerin, a practitioner of non-conventional medicine, during her years away from school and took part in a start-up competition. Prosecutors said they found no concrete indications for that second activity. The charges cover both the sick notes and the diving certificates.

Disciplinary action and retirement

The state of North Rhine-Westphalia moved the teacher into retirement, and she has contested that decision in court. Disciplinary proceedings were opened against her and against an employee of the Düsseldorf district government responsible for oversight. According to earlier statements, the disciplinary case is on hold until the criminal case reaches a decision. Under civil service rules, public servants generally keep their full pay during illness, unlike most employees, who receive statutory sick pay after six weeks.

What happens next

RP Online reported that the case is likely to go before a criminal court. Tagesspiegel reported that a conviction could bring a prison term of six to ten years, while Deutsche Welle and Berliner Zeitung described only a multi-year sentence. The indictment now goes to the court for review. The woman has not commented on the charges, and no verdict has been reached.