Federal Criminal Court acquits UBS in Bulgaria case
Published: Wednesday, Nov 27th 2024, 13:30
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The Appeals Chamber of the Federal Criminal Court has acquitted UBS in the Bulgaria case taken over by Credit Suisse. It has reduced the sentences of two other defendants. This is the result of the ruling published on Wednesday.
At the end of June 2022, the originally accused Credit Suisse was sentenced in the first instance to a fine of two million Swiss francs and to pay a compensation claim of 19 million Swiss francs for deficient organization of the company in connection with the criminal offence of qualified money laundering.
The Criminal Chamber found that the financial institution had failed to monitor banking relationships with the Bulgarian mafia and to comply with anti-money laundering regulations in the period from July 2007 to December 2008.
The Office of the Attorney General had limited its cross-appeal to the judgment in relation to the bank. Before the criminal division, it had demanded the statutory maximum penalty of five million francs and a claim for damages totaling 41 million francs.
Confidant of the mafia boss
Of the four people originally charged alongside Credit Suisse, one has since died. Two of them appealed against their conviction in the first instance. One of them was a confidant of the mafia boss Evelin Banev.
The appeal chamber sentenced the 50-year-old to a partial prison sentence of 29 months. The unconditional part has been served with credit for the 316 days spent in custody.
The chamber found the Bulgarian guilty of participation in a criminal organization, qualified money laundering and attempted qualified money laundering. The criminal division sentenced him to a partial prison sentence of 36 months and a fine.
The appeal chamber imposed a conditional prison sentence of five months on the Bulgarian's co-defendant, a 63-year-old from Valais, for supporting a criminal organization. The former employee of Bank Julius Baer left the financial institution to work for the Bulgarians. He was sentenced in the first instance to a conditional prison sentence of 14 months and a fine.
The ruling is not yet final and can be appealed to the Federal Supreme Court.
(Judgment CA.2023.20 of 27.11.2024)
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