Shortcomings in the fight against terrorism

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The cooperation between the federal government and the cantons did not work optimally before and after the knife attacks in Morges VD and Lugano TI in the fall of 2020. The Supervisory Commission for the Federal Prosecutor’s Office (AB-BA) notes several shortcomings and calls for action.

This is evident from an inspection report that was published on Tuesday. The AB-BA announced this at the end of December 2021. In Morges, an Islamic assassin attacked a 29-year-old man in a kebab restaurant in the fall of 2020, and just a few months later in Lugano, a woman in Lugano injured two customers with a knife in a shopping mall, one of them seriously.

Free despite danger

In the Morges case, the regulator criticized, among other things, “the lack of response from the federal prosecutor’s office after the Vaud authorities reported several violations of the replacement measures imposed”. The alleged perpetrator was already a target for jihadist activities before the knife attack. Despite this, he was released from prison, sparking some public outcry.

Moreover, the performances contradicted each other. Sources said federal prosecutors had asked for the man to be placed in a mental institution. The Vaud security service, on the other hand, stated that no cantonal authority had received a decision from the federal prosecutor ordering such internment.

The Council of State of Vaud pointed to “systemic shortcomings in the field of terrorist crimes in the federal prosecutor’s office”. In addition, the audit committees of the federal councils (GPK) asked questions to the regulator.

Authorities need to improve cooperation

During its inspection, the AB-BA came to the conclusion that the release of the suspect from pre-trial detention, which entailed numerous alternative measures, was justified. Nevertheless, she recommends “optimizing cooperation between the federal and cantonal prosecutor’s offices in the field of counter-terrorism”.

According to the AB-BA, a detailed risk assessment should have been carried out on the perpetrator from Morges. In the future, this must be done through a coordination office in which all government authorities involved are represented.

Criticism of the Attorney General

In the case of the Lugano knife attack, the federal prosecutor’s office had settled a previous criminal case against the suspect with a non-treatment order. The AB-BA is of the opinion that this order cannot simply be justified. It would have been “necessary to clarify the facts and conduct a detailed legal assessment,” the inspection report said. In the future, therefore, in such cases no non-compliance orders may be issued without notice of service, justification or information on the right to appeal.

To improve the risk assessment of suspects, the AB-BA also recommends that federal prosecutors’ offices deployed in the field of terrorist crimes acquire basic knowledge of forensic psychiatry. If there is any doubt as to whether pre-trial detention should be requested and no psychiatric report is available, the AB-BA recommends assessing the dangerousness of the suspect with the involvement of a forensic psychiatrist.

Communication is also a concern

In both cases, the AB-BA also found deficiencies with regard to the definition of and compliance with the processes, in particular with regard to the communication of the process control. In the case of Morges, the Vaud authorities were “not sufficiently involved in the communication” from the regulator’s point of view. In both cases, the media and the public were not informed by the Office of the Attorney General, but by the cantonal authorities and the federal police station Fedpol.

The AB-BA’s recommendations are welcomed by the Attorney General and are being implemented, as stated in a statement. The two cases in Morges and Lugano took place during the tenure of former federal prosecutor Michael Lauber. Stefan Blättler has headed the Attorney General’s Office since January 2022. (SDA)

Source:Blick