Overview
- The Heilbronn regional court, which delivered its verdict Tuesday, sentenced five men to prison terms ranging from 2 years 9 months to 4 years 3 months.
- Judges said a 1987-born defendant played a central organizing role and received 4 years 3 months, while two driving-school operators got 3 years 8 months and 3 years 9 months, and two others received 2 years 9 months each.
- Prosecutors proved a scheme in which look-alike stand-ins used real test-takers’ ID cards to sit the theoretical driving exam for a fee.
- Investigators charged 59 cases from late 2022 to summer 2025, mostly in Baden‑Württemberg with some in Bavaria, with clients paying about €2,000 per exam and the group taking in more than €179,000.
- The court credited early, wide-ranging confessions that cut the trial to seven days and reduced sentences below prosecutors’ requests, and it said the men plugged into a larger system that authorities have yet to fully map.