Facts
The case concerns a criminal proceeding opened by the Office of the Attorney General of the Confederation (MPC) against X. for the offense of money laundering (Art. 305bis SCC). The investigations have revealed that X. holds a bank account at a bank in Lugano, into which funds originating from Italy, presumably from illicit drug trafficking, have been deposited. The Federal Investigating Magistrates' Office (UGI) has therefore ordered the opening of a preliminary investigation.
X., represented by a defense counsel in Switzerland, has contested the federal jurisdiction in the proceedings, requesting that the case be assigned to the Public Prosecutor's Office of the Canton of Ticino. The Indictment Division of the Federal Supreme Court has been called upon to decide on the issue of jurisdiction.
Considerations
According to established case law, the forum does not depend on the offenses that will ultimately be charged against the accused, but on those that may be considered based on the state of the case at the time the Indictment Division of the Federal Supreme Court rules.
In the present case, the criminal proceedings have been opened exclusively for the offense of money laundering (Art. 305bis SCC). Pursuant to Art. 340bis para. 1 let. a SCC, this offense is subject to federal jurisdiction provided that it has been committed predominantly abroad.
The Federal Supreme Court has held that, for the purposes of interpreting this provision, the concept of "predominant" or "significant" part of the offense must be…