In the forgery scandal a former mirror Reporter has denied the Journalist to have him collected donations for personal use. The Syrian children, for the reader, he has written “mirror”-report “king’s children” gave money, did not exist. E-Mail contact with readers and in communications to the donation, the author was “the Illusion of the real existence of the described Geschwisterpaars upright,” said the law firm Unverzagt von Have, in the name of Claas Relotius on Thursday in Hamburg.

Relotius had offered, therefore, after various letters ready readers donations, to raise funds on his private account, and forward. “To any time he, however, intends to donate itself to the Association. Such use is also is never,“ says the law firm. In fact, her client was raised up on account of his donations to date amount to a total of 7000 Euro from its own funds to 9000 euros and in October 2016, the Diakonie katastrophenhilfe for a project to support war-volatile children in Iraq transferred.

“Our client apologized explicitly for all the helpful donors, the need to feel in your Intention to donate to the described Syrian brothers and sisters, deceived,” said the firm. He is going to refund all the donors their money completely. The Diakonie katastrophenhilfe confirmed to have in 2016, the money from Relotius.

“Over a number of years facts

The” mirror “distorts” had reported at the weekend that her then-freelancer 2016 only invented a story about alleged Syrian orphans in Turkey, in large Parts, but also private calls donations have on a reader sent.

“Our client has already acknowledged that he falsified in his reports, Mainly in the magazine “The mirror” – over several years, many of the facts misrepresented, and invented,” said the firm on Thursday. “Spiegel Online” published the communication from the attorneys as an Addendum in his post “Reporter, deceived readers, apparently, with a call for donations”.