Published
Saint-GallA grocer resold bottles of alcohol stolen from the Coop
A Sri Lankan sold spirits in his store which he bought back from asylum seekers who stole them from shops.
The bottles passed in turn through the hands of Manor and the Coop, then to asylum seekers, then to a grocer, then to normally-meaning customers. A 33-year-old Sri Lankan man has just been convicted of selling bottles that were previously stolen.
big fine
He bought a small quantity of spirits from asylum seekers. One day in August 2021, he bought eleven bottles of Jack Daniel’s whiskey from an asylum seeker. These had been stolen on the same day from Coop de Heerbrugg, from a Manor branch in Sargans and from Coop de Sargans. For each of the bottles of alcohol, he paid 15 francs to the “suppliers”. According to the penal order, the 30-year-old “knew or must have assumed that the persons had obtained the bottles by a punishable act”. This is why the Public Ministry condemned the man to a fine of 6400 francs.
Criminal record
If he does not pay this fine, he will have to spend 80 days in prison. The Sri Lankan will also have to pay additional fees to the public treasury. His activity as a receiver thus cost him nearly 8,000 francs. It is still possible to oppose the penal order. If the fine is so high and absolute, it is because the man had a criminal record. “The defendant has shown that the suspended sentence (note: in the past) clearly did not prevent him from committing new crimes,” writes the Public Ministry.
(jeb/ofu)
