Justice: He insults his former colleagues in Switzerland and hides in Portugal

The seriousness of a crime is relative from one country to another. Swiss justice has just experienced this, prosecuting a 73-year-old retiree for insults, defamation and threats. Residing in Portugal, this ex-financier regularly sends virulent e-mails to former business partners, calling them “Nazis” and “charlatans”. Swiss authorities therefore issued an international warrant against him in 2020.

Since then, the man has been arrested twice in Europe, in Portugal and the Netherlands. In 2021, Portugal rejected an extradition request, finding that the facts did not justify such a measure. It should be noted that in Switzerland, defamation and insults are criminal offenses, unlike other countries, where these disputes are often settled in civil court.

The accused, who considers the accusations to be exaggerated, refused to appear at the hearings in Switzerland and continued his provocative email campaigns. Despite this, the international warrant remains in force, and in 2022 the pensioner was arrested in Amsterdam only to be released again.

The intransigent Zurich Public Prosecutor’s Office continued the sanctions and confiscated several tens of thousands of Swiss francs from his Swiss account to cover the fines imposed. The fugitive’s lawyers describe the pursuit as excessive and advise their client to avoid Switzerland. The Swiss authorities do not comment on the proportionality of their approach, citing complex and confidential procedures.

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