Dismissal of the complaint against the judgment of the High Court of the Canton of Zurich regarding theft and minor theft

Facts

The complainant [X.] was found guilty of theft and minor theft by the High Court of the Canton of Zurich. The complainant had stolen [A.] 's wallet worth Fr. 50.-- with cash in the amount of Fr. 20.-- to Fr. 70.-- and a jacket worth Fr. 235.-- from [B.] on January 1, 2017, in a Zurich nightclub.

The District Court of Zurich found [X.] guilty on March 23, 2017, of theft under Art. 139 para. 1 SCC and minor theft under Art. 139 para. 1 in conjunction with Art. 172ter para. 1 SCC and multiple violations of the NarcA under Art. 19a para. 1 in conjunction with Art. 19 para. 1 lit. d NarcA, and sentenced him to a fine of 40 daily rates of Fr. 20.-- and a fine of Fr. 600.--.

On appeal by [X.] , the High Court of Zurich confirmed on December 21, 2017, the conviction for theft under Art. 139 para. 1 SCC and minor theft under Art. 139 para. 1 in conjunction with Art. 172ter para. 1 SCC, and confirmed the final conviction for multiple violations of the NarcA.

Considerations

The complainant alleges that, with regard to the minor theft of the jacket, there is no valid criminal complaint, and thus claims a violation of Art. 30 and 139 para. 1 in conjunction with Art. 172ter para. 1 SCC as well as Art. 304 para. 1 CrimPC.

The Federal Court states that a valid criminal complaint exists if the person entitled to file a complaint declares their unconditional will to prosecute the offender to the competent authority within the time limit, so that the criminal proceedings continue without further declaration of will.

The lower court states that the injured party [B.] described the incident to the police in detail and thus declared his will to prosecute the complainant in a timely and formal manner.

The complainant alleges that the lower…