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4.5 million francs stolen from armoured car in Bern

A Swiss court on Friday revealed for the first time that an armoured truck had been robbed in Thunstetten, in the canton of Bern.

Published: 8 December 2019 16:54 CET

4.5 million francs stolen from armoured car in Bern

Photo: Depositphotos

The court heard that investigators have been able to find no trace of the money.

The Swiss Federal Court on Friday revealed that the money was taken on July 1st, with assistance of the driver of the armoured car.

The perpetrator, who confessed to the theft, took the money from the truck and placed it in another vehicle and transported it to a garage in Rickenbach.

Initially arrested on August 14th, the man has been in police custody since – but applied for a release from prison in October.

No trace of the loot

The court heard that the accused perpetrator transferred the money to an accomplice who has now been imprisoned in the Czech Republic. Swiss authorities are considering making an extradition order.

Four people are currently in custody for receiving stolen money.

Armoured car heists are frequent in Switzerland, particularly in Vaud. The most recent took place on the 2nd of December, with attacks also taking place in Vaud in April, June and August of 2019.

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Switzerland's new law change around rape comes into force

Incidents of rape have been on the increase in Switzerland in recent years.

For example, in 2022 some 867 cases were reported to police – an increase of 14.5 percent on the previous year.

These statistics have helped propel a long running debate over the legal definition of rape in the country and whether the law has been fit for purpose.

For over thirty years, the country’s Swiss Criminal Code considered rape to require penetration and physical resistance from the victim, in order to be prosecuted.

Verbal communication of a clear ‘no’ was not considered as a determining factor in prosecution.

However, from July 1st 2024 the principle of “no means no” will be applied in rape investigation and prosecutions, in Switzerland with verbal refusal of consent taken into consideration by police and the judiciary.

Furthermore, courts will be given grounds to consider the victim’s state of shock or fear, in the absence of a verbal refusal.

A problematic definition

The previous definition of rape risked perpetrators of sexual violence walking free, as their actions did not fit the existing precise definition – as Clare O’Dea explained in an article for The Local.

The lack of a revised definition resulted in widespread criticism from groups from within and outside of Switzerland.

In 2019 the issue entered the national spotlight, as the shocking results of a survey carried out by Amnesty International revealed 1 in 5 Swiss women was the victim of rape or sexual violence.

Significant pressure to change the law came from the Council of Europe, which argued the Swiss definition of rape was a hurdle to the Swiss implementation of the Istanbul Convention on violence against women.

These pressures finally led to the Federal Council into action. Switzerland’s higher federal legislative body, the Council of States, voted in favour of a change on January 11, 2024.

Why some cantons may not be ready

With the law change only days away, thinktank Reat.ch reported on Monday that there is a disparity between Switzerland’s cantons when it comes to training and equipping law enforcement and reporting authorities.

In their report, the groups highlighted cantons such as Bern, Jura, Uri, Vaud and Valais as being well-advanced in preparations for the introduction of the “no means no” principle through education programs.

In contrast, Appenzell-Outer Rhodes, Glarus and Obwalden were each singled out as cantons where little to no progress had been made in working with police and other emergency services to prepare.

Overall, the report suggests that French-speaking areas of Switzerland have made far more progress in preparation for July 1st, than many of their German-speaking counterparts.

In addition, the report also signalled that across the country, services and options for male victims of rape were largely overlooked.

Furthermore, more rigorous and sustained collection of data regarding sexual violence was called for.

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