Facts
In the case at hand, a group of people had planned to steal a large quantity of dried cannabis (at least 1,500 kg) stored in a warehouse of the Ticino cantonal police, as part of the "Indoor" operation against the illegal production and trafficking of narcotics. After several attempts, the group had managed to break into the warehouse and hide the stolen goods in an underground tunnel. The police had subsequently recovered most of the cannabis, except for a small part intended for one of the accomplices.
The Assize Court of Bellinzona had convicted the defendants for theft (attempted and completed), violation of the Narcotics Act, and damage. However, the Court of Appeal of the Canton of Ticino had partially upheld the appeal of one of the defendants, acquitting him of the theft charges.
The Public Prosecutor's Office of the Canton of Ticino had therefore filed a cassation appeal with the Federal Tribunal, challenging the acquittal of the defendants from the theft charges.
Considerations
The Federal Tribunal examined the issue of the existence or non-existence of a "thing belonging to another" within the meaning of Art. 139 No. 1 of the Swiss Criminal Code (SCC), as a constitutive element of the crime of theft. The case law of the Federal Tribunal has established that the notion of "thing belonging to another" in property criminal law must be traced back to the concept of ownership under civil law.
In the specific case, the Federal Tribunal found that the stolen cannabis did not belong to…