German slacker embarrasses city

A public official from Minden, Germany, set off a national media firestorm after bragging about being paid for years of work he never performed.

The unnamed public employee, a surveyor, allegedly decided to send an email to 500 fellow employees boasting that he hadn’t worked in the last 14 years even though he was paid $975,000 by the city. He sent the shocking admission to coworkers as he was retiring. '''Since 1998, I was present but not really there. So I'm going to be well prepared for retirement – Adieu,''' he wrote. Minden is located in North Rhine – Westphalia. The man claims “constant reshuffling at his job” allowed him to get away with never having to work. The city of Minden allegedly paid the government slacker without suspecting there was a problem in all those years. The retiree apparently emailed his coworkers to let them in on his 14-year sham before considering any potential consequences. After someone leaked the email to regional media the story spread quickly in the German press, enraging taxpayers and causing significant embarrassment for city officials, especially Michael Buhre, mayor of the city with a population of approximately 82,000. “This kind of behavior is very telling,” Minden’s Mayor Buhre told local press. For his part, after creating national outrage with his taunting admission, the 65-year-old retiree is no longer arrogant about his slouchy work ethic. “I do not wish to say anything else,” he recently told his local newspaper.