Gero Strauß’s trial: Hearings have now been scheduled well into the autumn

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The trial of ENT specialist Gero Strauß at Leipzig Regional Court is likely to take longer than initially planned: the dates originally scheduled up to and including 18 August will not be sufficient, as was announced on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the fraud trial against the defendant continued with the examination of further witnesses.

With the planned examination of further witnesses, the Leipzig Regional Court resumed the trial against Prof. Gero Strauß on Tuesday: as reported, the former head of the Leipzig Head Centre is charged, amongst other things, with eight counts of serious fraud and 57 counts of breach of trust.

A key point in the indictment is that, between February and June 2022, Strauß – as managing partner of the Kopfzentrum Group – is alleged to have entered into seven loan agreements but failed to invest the money in the acquisition of medical practices. Instead, Strauß is alleged to have misappropriated the substantial sums to fund a luxurious lifestyle. The estimated loss amounts to more than 1.5 million euros. The 54-year-old has not yet commented on the allegations during the trial.

Witness learnt of Kopfzentrum’s insolvency from the media

A witness recalled the following on Tuesday: the commercial managing director of a Berlin healthcare facility (aged 54) was involved in discussions in 2022/23 regarding the possible sale of a practice to the Kopfzentrum Group.

“I spoke to Mr Strauß on the phone once; otherwise, I was in contact with other managing directors.” The witness stated that he had not noticed any signs of problems beforehand. He was therefore all the more astonished when he learnt of the Kopfzentrum Group’s insolvency from the media. Contact had previously broken off when everything seemed to be wrapped up and the planned purchase price of 180,000 euros became due.

New hearing dates set for November 2026

Another witness was unable to attend on Tuesday because, according to the court, she was still in Italy. In any case, the trial against Gero Strauß had caused quite a stir right from the start. For instance, the defendant initially failed to appear at the hearing without giving notice and is said to have once submitted a medical certificate that was allegedly forged. This turmoil led to a number of delays in this mammoth trial.

On Tuesday, the court, in consultation with the parties involved, set further hearing dates up to 3 November 2026. It is not yet possible to say whether a verdict will follow by then.