Swiss judiciary on the yoke: money laundering case turns into a mysterious business crime

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Sergei Magnitsky was a Russian tax adviser who died in prison in 2009 after exposing corruption among Russian authorities. A series of laws are named after him, based on the ability of the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Attorney General, to impose financial sanctions and entry bans on foreign individuals and entities in connection with serious humanitarian events. rights violations or corruption. Since 2017, the US government has imposed sanctions on more than 600 individuals and organizations in 41 countries.

US investor Bill Browder’s Hermitage Capital Management fund filed a criminal complaint in Switzerland in 2011 on suspicion of money laundering in a $230 million Russian tax evasion case. Magnitsky, the fund’s tax adviser, documented the case that led to his arrest and eventual death. The fund was misused to transfer 18 million francs to Switzerland, out of a total of $230 million, according to Hermitage. They apparently flowed into UBS and Credit Suisse accounts.

“There is no proven doubt”

The Swiss federal prosecutor’s office confiscated the sums, but dropped the case for lack of evidence after ten years of investigation. “Based on their extensive investigation, BA states that there is no confirmed suspicion in Switzerland to justify the charges,” the press release said. Only 4 million of the 18 million francs could be proven to be related to crimes in Russia.

The three Russian citizens involved in the fraud should get back 14 million of the 18 million francs. Two of the three Russian citizens, Vladlen Stepanov and Dmitry Klyuev, face sanctions in the US and other Western countries; third, Denis Katsyv reportedly reached an agreement with the US Department of Justice.

Special Rapporteur: “There is no valid reason to close the case”

Hermitage and Browder were no longer considered special prosecutors, as federal prosecutors did not see Hermitage as an injured party in the tax fraud case. Therefore, the Hermitage could not appeal the decision to return the money.

Alongside the USA, the Council of Europe also criticizes the Swiss judiciary’s stance on the Magnitsky case. Special rapporteur Andreas Gross, in an interview with “Swissinfo” in 2021, was horrified by the end of the procedure: “There is no valid reason for this. Worse is the experience that almost no one is bothered by it. A few MPs who dig deeper are being fooled by meaningless answers. The Federal Council appears to tolerate the behavior.”

In early 2023, the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona confirmed that most of the funds were returned to Stepanov, Klyuev and Katsyv.

However, the outcome of the appeal to the federal court against the federal criminal court’s decision, which supported the decision that the Hermitage would no longer be considered a special prosecutor, is still open. Upon request, the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office declared that as long as these cases are pending before the Federal Supreme Court, it cannot take further action or continue with criminal prosecution.

Source :Blick