Spattered by the Crypto scandal, this PLR died

Former State Councilor Rolf Schweiger has passed away. The Zougois found himself in the spotlight during the Crypto affair in February 2020.

The former Zug liberal-radical state councilor Rolf Schweiger died on Saturday in Baar (ZG) at the age of 80. He served on the States from December 1999 to December 2011.

A spokesperson for the PLR ​​in the canton of Zug confirmed the death announced Monday by Blick. He was “an impressive personality” with relevant, intelligent and astute arguments and also a lot of humor, PLR president Thierry Burkart told the Keystone-ATS agency.

Rolf Schweiger chaired the Council of States in 2004. In April 2004, the Zougois became president of the PLR, a mandate he had to relinquish in November of the same year due to burnout.

Scandale Crypto

From 2014 to 2018, Rolf Schweiger was a member of the board of directors of Crypto SA. He thus found himself in the spotlight when the Crypto scandal broke out in February 2020.

The American (CIA) and German (BND) intelligence services have, for decades, intercepted thousands of documents via the Crypto company’s encryption devices. They also listened to the conversations of more than a hundred foreign states.

The CIA and the BND bought the Zug company in equal shares in 1970, through a foundation based in Liechtenstein. The BND left the operation in 1993, but the CIA continued the wiretapping until at least 2018.

A parliamentary investigation showed that the Swiss intelligence service had known since 1993 that foreign services were hiding behind Crypto. He worked with them to collect information. (jzs/ats)

Federal Councilor Viola Amherd is facing a request for resignation, accused by the UDC of prioritizing non-essential priorities to the detriment of Switzerland’s security.

The SVP leadership demanded the resignation of Federal Councilor Viola Amherd on Saturday. Switzerland’s leading party criticizes the Defense Minister for setting the wrong priorities for the army.