After bank robbery. Four men found guilty in Geneva.
In September 2013, a gang of robbers robbed a UBS branch in Geneva. Four men were convicted on Wednesday. Another defendant escaped with an acquittal.
In the trial of a robbery and hostage-taking at a UBS branch in Geneva, the criminal court found four men guilty on Wednesday. A fifth defendant was acquitted.
The robbery happened in September 2013 near Geneva Central Station. Three men had posed as police officers and broke into the home of the mother of a bank employee at a UBS branch. There they tied up the people in the apartment and took photos of them.
These pictures were shown to the UBS cashier as he paused in front of the building. Fearing for the lives of his loved ones, the clerk went to the bank’s vault and stuffed two pockets with bills. He handed her over to the robbers, who then fled. The booty believes it is 1.25 million francs.
The defendants all denied being involved in the robbery. However, the court did not believe her “imaginative explanations”. When determining the sentences, the judges took into account the lengthy investigation. It took nine years for the case to reach court.
Escape in a private jet
The main suspect, a Frenchman of Moroccan descent, was believed to be the mastermind behind the gang. Among other things, he is said to have researched the habits of the bank employee who was later mugged by the gang.
Another defendant, who played the role of “treasurer,” was sentenced to five years in prison, partially suspended. According to the court, the man had the task of distributing the loot among the accomplices. He also organized the leader’s escape to Morocco by booking him a flight on a private plane.
DNA on tape
Another accomplice, who was involved in the robbery as a “servant” and grew up in Annemasse, France, must go to prison for six months, according to the guilty verdict. Before the court he acted without violence. The court also found another man, who now lives in Dubai, guilty. This is said to have provided information primarily between the accomplices, not least when there was tension in the group over booty.
The fifth accused – also from Annemasse – was acquitted for lack of evidence. His DNA was found on a piece of tape used to tie up most of the bank employee’s deaths. But there is also another, unknown DNA on the sticker.
SDA/two