published5. August 2022, 04:56
investigate authoritiesLuzerner drives a Mercedes and wears a Rolex – despite 25 lawsuits
A 38-year-old is being investigated for bankruptcy tricks – he is said to have stolen almost half a million francs with accomplices. In the canton of Zurich alone, this causes damage amounting to hundreds of millions of francs every year.
R. likes to show off with luxury goods, such as a Mercedes. This is contrasted by a long debt collection extract with 25 entries, which is available in 20 minutes.
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The 38-year-old is a businessman: he has held shares in at least seven companies over the past five years, as a look at the commercial register shows. Because of one of them, however, the authorities are now investigating once morest him.
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The authorities accuse a Lucerne resident of having swindled almost half a million with bankruptcy tricks.
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A former business partner describes the man as very charismatic: “Over time, however, I realized how much damage he causes through his practices.”
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In the canton of Zurich alone, such practices cause damage in the three-digit million range every year.
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The man declined to comment when asked. The presumption of innocence applies to him.
TR (initials changed) poses in photos with luxury goods: once he shows himself with a Mercedes, various Rolex watches adorn his wrist. This is contrasted by a long debt collection extract with 25 entries, which is available in 20 minutes.
Creditors include a fitness center, the canton of Lucerne or a health insurance company. He has paid some of the outstanding amounts, but a total of seven loss certificates are listed in the statement.
money laundering and bankruptcy crimes
The 38-year-old is a businessman: he has held shares in at least seven companies over the past five years, as a look at the commercial register shows. Because of one of them, however, the authorities are now investigating once morest him. Between July and December 2016, R. and his accomplices are said to have illegally withdrawn almost 450,000 francs from the company and covered it up with forged invoices.
The public prosecutor’s office in Solothurn accuses TR of money laundering, among other things, according to a judicial document that is available for 20 minutes. Although he left the company at the beginning of July 2016, the investigators continue to see him as the “actual managing director”. On request, the public prosecutor’s office confirms ongoing proceedings for fraudulent business management, mismanagement and other bankruptcy and document offences.
A former business partner describes TR as very charismatic: “Over time, however, I realized how much damage R. causes through his practices.” So he withdrew from his environment. He wishes to remain anonymous because of concerns regarding his personal safety.
Three-digit million damage
What R. is accused of is a well-known procedure, says Andrea Jug-Höhener, the chief investigator for white-collar crime at the Zurich cantonal police. Another type of so-called bankruptcy cavalry (see box) is even more common: “A company undertaker takes over a company, hollows it out and then lets it go bankrupt.”
“These are not trifles”
Mr. Kälin*, what is bankruptcy cavalry?
Typically, at the beginning there is a company that is in economic difficulties. An intermediary offers to sign over the company to a so-called “undertaker,” often for a fee. The undertaker relocates the company headquarters to another canton and leases cars, for example, or buys goods on account. He doesn’t care regarding the business. The company will sooner or later go bankrupt. The creditors get nothing because the coffers are empty and the goods have disappeared.
In which industries is it most common?
As a rule, smaller companies in the catering or construction industry are affected, but this does not necessarily have to be the case.
How is the offense punished?
Bankruptcy is a mismanagement offense punishable by up to five years in prison. Other offenses are also possible, such as dishonest business dealings and forgery of documents. So there are no trifles.
*Oliver Kälin is a lawyer specializing in bankruptcy law and runs the Zurich law firm “kaelin.legal AG”.
After a decrease in the last two years, bankruptcy riding has been increasing once more in the canton of Zurich since the beginning of 2022, according to Jug-Höhener. In addition to business partners, the general public is also badly damaged. The federal government does not have Switzerland-wide figures, as the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs writes on request. But: “In the canton of Zurich alone, the annual damage caused by such crimes is in the hundreds of millions,” says Jug-Höhener.
In order to limit the damage, close cooperation between different authorities is required. In March 2022, parliament also passed tightening of the law to combat systematic bankruptcy abuse: “We expressly welcome this,” says investigator Jug-Höhener.
TR itself does not want to comment on the allegations when asked. The presumption of innocence applies to him.
