Facts
The S.-Anlagefonds investment fund was created on 16 September 1963. T. AG was the management company and [E. AG] and B.L. AG were the depositories. The fund issued certificates that were sold to investors with a promise of a 5% return. However, the fund did not generate any profits and the certificates were used to finance the activities of T. AG. The defendants, [E.], L., K., and S., were convicted of fraudulent bankruptcy, forgery, breach of trust, and other offenses.
The issue in dispute is whether the defendants committed a criminal fault by reducing the assets of the investment fund. The judges considered that the assets of the investment fund are not considered as the management company's own assets, but rather as a special assets managed on behalf of the investors.
Considerations
The judges considered that Article 163 of the Swiss Criminal Code, which concerns fraudulent bankruptcy, does not apply to the assets of the investment fund. Indeed, the assets of the investment fund are not considered as the management company's own assets, but rather as a special assets managed on behalf of the investors.
The judges also considered that the reduction of the assets of the investment fund does not constitute a criminal fault, as it did not harm the interests of the management company's creditors. The creditors of the management company cannot claim a share of the assets of the investment fund, as it is managed on behalf of the…