Facts
The Swiss Federal Prosecutor's Office opened an investigation against several persons on suspicion of supporting or participating in an internationally active criminal organisation in drug trafficking. After completing the investigation, the Federal Prosecutor's Office filed charges with the Federal Criminal Court for qualified violation of the Narcotics Act and, in part, for money laundering.
However, the Criminal Chamber of the Federal Criminal Court did not enter a plea on the charges against three of the accused, as it considered the requirements for federal jurisdiction under Art. 340bis(1) SCC not to be fulfilled. The Federal Prosecutor's Office appealed against this decision to the DFC.
Considerations
The DFC states that for the determination of federal jurisdiction under Art. 340bis(1) SCC, the existence of a criminal organisation within the meaning of Art. 260ter SCC is decisive. It is sufficient that at the beginning of the investigation there were concrete indications of the existence of such an organisation, even if the suspicion could not be substantiated during the proceedings.
The Criminal Chamber should therefore have entered a plea on the charges, as the Federal Prosecutor's Office had rightly assumed the…