After the turnaround in the Vincenz trial: white-collar criminals end up behind bars less often than petty criminals

class=”sc-cffd1e67-0 iQNQmc”>

Class criminal law before the judge? In Switzerland, the different treatment of white-collar criminals and petty criminals in court raises questions. Data shows that in Switzerland you are much more likely to end up in prison for theft or robbery than for money laundering, corruption or fraud, write the Tamedia newspapers.

A look at current cases illustrates the discrepancy. Ex-Raiffeisen boss Pierin Vincenz (67) received the annulment of his judgment at first instance this week. Convicted fraudster Franz A. Zölch (75) has repeatedly managed to delay his imprisonment by two years.

Mild punishments for economic crimes

Statistics show that those convicted of fraud or money laundering rarely go to prison compared to other property crimes, even for millions, Tamedia newspapers continue. Examples such as the corruption case at Seco, the SBB fraud case and the case of a 60 million euro money launderer illustrate that the penalties can be relatively mild.

On the other hand, more than 4,000 people are sent to prison every year for relatively minor crimes. Alternative prison sentences have played a central role here, especially since the 2007 revision of criminal law. Studies have shown that many of those affected are unable to pay these fines, leading to an increase in prison sentences for minor crimes.

Procedural delays in economic crimes

Experts, including criminal justice professor Martin Killias (75), describe this as ‘class criminal law’, where prison is mainly reserved for a lower class. According to criminal law professor Monika Simmler (34), wealthy white-collar criminals are extremely rarely sent to prison, especially with short prison sentences of up to two years.

The ability to delay proceedings differs significantly between well-defended white-collar criminals and asylum seekers. Research by the Tamedia newspapers shows that in economic crimes the decision on seized documents takes three times longer than in other crimes. This underlines the challenges and inequalities in the Swiss legal system. (oco)

Source:Blick