Facts
On August 22, 1977, the debt collection office of Würenlingen, at the request of the Kunststeinfabrik S. AG, retained various objects in the rented premises of the company V. AG for the current rent from October 1, 1977 to February 28, 1978. The retention certificate was issued on September 9, 1977 and sent to V. However, he had already removed the objects at the end of August or at the latest at the beginning of September 1977.
On September 20, 1978, the District Court of Baden found V. guilty of disposing of officially recorded objects within the meaning of Art. 169 of the Swiss Criminal Code and sentenced him to 2 months' imprisonment with the grant of a suspended sentence. V.'s appeal against this decision was dismissed by the High Court of the Canton of Aargau on June 7, 1979.
V. filed a nullity appeal requesting the annulment of the High Court's judgment and the remission of the case to the lower court for acquittal.
Considerations
The Federal Court dismissed the nullity appeal. It stated that according to Art. 169 of the Swiss Criminal Code, the disposal of an object that has been officially recorded in a retention procedure to the detriment of the creditors is punishable. The fact that the retention certificate was not served on the debtor within the 3-day time limit does not lead to the expiration of the retention order. Rather, it expires only if the landlord fails to initiate enforcement proceedings for the realization of the pledge within 10 days after the rent is due.
The Federal Court further…