Facts
On 9 April 2020, the District Court of Horgen convicted the appellant [A.] of commercial and organized theft, multiple counts of property damage, multiple counts of trespass, and serious money laundering, and sentenced him to 48 months' imprisonment and a fine of 50 daily rates of CHF 30.-- . It also expelled him from the country for 10 years. On appeal by [A.] and the public prosecutor, the High Court of the Canton of Zurich upheld the first-instance judgment on 29 November 2021.
[A.] filed a criminal complaint, requesting acquittal and compensation for the wrongful imprisonment. The civil claims should be dismissed or referred to civil proceedings. All seized items should be returned. He should be granted legal aid in the federal court proceedings.
Considerations
The Federal Court dismissed the complaint, to the extent that it was admissible. It confirmed the conviction of the appellant for commercial and organized theft, property damage, and money laundering.
The Federal Court stated that the lower court had convincingly established the appellant's authorship of the charged burglary thefts. The objections raised by the appellant were unfounded and did not prove arbitrariness or a violation of federal law.
In particular, the lower court relied on a chain of circumstantial evidence,…