Monitoring of a Third Party's Telephone Connection

Facts

The Public Prosecutor's Office II of the Canton of Zurich is conducting a criminal investigation against [X.] for criminal preparatory acts. On September 14, 2012, the Public Prosecutor's Office requested the High Court of the Canton of Zurich, the Court of Coercive Measures, to approve the monitoring of the telephone connection of the accused's girlfriend. The Court of Coercive Measures refused to approve the monitoring measure by order dated September 17, 2012.

The Public Prosecutor's Office appealed against this order to the Federal Supreme Court. It requested the annulment of the contested decision and the approval of the requested monitoring measure.

Considerations

The Federal Supreme Court states that Art. 270 lit. b No. 1 CrimPC also allows the monitoring of third-party connections that the accused is highly likely to call. Such monitoring serves to obtain information about criminal offenses that cannot be obtained through the monitoring of the accused's own telephone connection.

The Federal Supreme Court emphasizes that the monitoring of third parties must be handled particularly restrictively and is only permissible if there are sufficient indications that the accused is…