Facts
The appellant [X.] was convicted by the Higher Court of the Canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden for multiple qualified embezzlement, multiple forgery, and multiple attempted false statements about commercial enterprises. The conviction resulted in a prison sentence of 34 months, partially conditional with a probation period of five years. The appellant lodged an appeal with the request to quash the judgment and acquit him of the charges of multiple embezzlement and multiple attempted false statements about commercial enterprises.
The lower court had convicted the appellant of embezzlement from September 23, 1993, to 2004, of forgery from 1996 to 2002, and of attempted false statements about commercial enterprises from 1996 to 2002. The appellant, as the sole member of the board of directors of [A. AG] , had withdrawn funds from the company's account for private purposes and created forged annual financial statements to conceal his actions.
Considerations
The Federal Court partially approved the appeal and quashed the judgment of the Higher Court, insofar as it had not become final. The appellant was acquitted of the charges of embezzlement prior to December 9, 1994, and attempted false statements about commercial enterprises prior to December 9, 1999, due to statute of limitations.
The Federal Court found that the appellant's embezzlement actions did not constitute a natural unit of action, as there was a longer period of time between the individual withdrawals and they did not result from a uniform act of will. The same applies to the offense of false statements about commercial enterprises, as there was a one-year gap between the individual forgery…