After being fired, a 37-year-old computer scientist – apparently in a drunken state – sent several abusive and threatening emails to the employer. He’s been in prison for almost a year now.
The 37-year-old computer scientist worked for a software company in Zurich and was made redundant in April 2021 at the end of July.
According to his defense attorney, the accused is a vegan, sensitive, has high ethical principles and a strong sense of justice: he had the feeling that he was being bullied systematically and unfairly. The 37-year-old computer scientist worked for a software company in Zurich and was made redundant in April 2021 with effect from the end of July. In August and September 2021, he wrote emails to his former CEO and the head of human resources, five of which made it into a prosecutor’s indictment.
He asked the two to pay him money, otherwise he would make currywurst out of their genitals. He insulted both executives, the woman as a “ridiculously stupid figure” and “stinky village cunt”, the manager as a “sick Nazi pig”. One e-mail was titled “Erschiessung in accordance with the standards”, in which he asked for 44,000 francs, in another 35,000 francs, otherwise the manager would be dead the next day. It was also said that he would kill 1,000 children in Zurich prosecution in an e-mail.
The computer scientist was arrested in October 2021 and has been in custody for 325 days since then – because of these emails. A psychiatric report diagnosed him with a mental disorder. In addition to multiple attempts at extortion and repeated insults, the indictment also includes minor damage to property: After receiving the notice of termination, he is said to have sprinkled ashes over the keyboard of his company laptop in the home office, which required a cleaning of 150 francs.
He admits to insults, but not blackmail
The suspect, who is spending time in prison learning Chinese characters, admits in court to writing offensive emails. That was incredibly embarrassing for him today and I’m very sorry. Nobody deserves such news.
But he is 100% sure that he will never send such bad emails again in his life. He will treat everyone with kindness and respect. At the time, he was under the influence of alcohol and felt provoked by the company and the team. The company unilaterally cut his wages against the contract.
However, the computer scientist denies that he consciously sent those e-mails that the prosecutor rated as blackmail. Someone else could have done this using their password. At least he doesn’t remember it. He was extremely drunk and had “a film tear”.
He is not the type to write bad things in capital letters. He drank a whole bottle of vodka. The fact that he drinks such a quantity “only happens every five years”. During the investigation, the accused had also insisted that his superior was in fact a Nazi.
When the accused said in the courtroom that he would kill 1,000 children, it was a big misunderstanding. She was taken out of context. Rather, he was concerned that the police should not do anything against autocrats who had killed 1,000 children and hoarded millions in Swiss bank accounts.
The police even take them under consular protection. The allegation of the ashes on the laptop is also ridiculous. He is a smoker and has been allowed to smoke at his home office workplace during the pandemic.
He has a high degree of self-reflection, he says, and would voluntarily seek psychotherapy, but he hopes that it will be an outpatient measure and not an inpatient one.
Mental disorder, but unclear which one
Although the accused has now been in prison for 10 months, the public prosecutor is demanding a prison sentence of 8 months, which is to be deferred in favor of an outpatient measure, and an enforceable fine of 120 daily rates.
The accused had previously been convicted of insults. The psychiatric report attested to a mental disorder and risk of recurrence due to his appearance. Because the accused did not cooperate, the expert was unable to diagnose him as to which mental disorder it was exactly.
The defense attorney is requesting a conviction to a small fine only because of the admitted insult and acquittal of attempted extortion and damage to property. The computer scientist’s demand for money was not an unjustified intention to enrich oneself. The accused was systematically and unfairly bullied in the company and was entitled to reduced or missing wage payments. He only wanted to demand payments that he was entitled to.
Higher sentence than requested by the prosecutor
The Zurich District Court finally sentenced the accused to 14 months in prison for attempted extortion and an enforceable fine of 30 daily rates of CHF 30 each for the insults. The proceedings regarding minor damage to property are discontinued. An outpatient measure with inpatient induction is ordered. The preventive detention will be extended until the start of this inpatient initiation.
The court considers the e-mails to be attempts at blackmail. Even if the accused had still been entitled to payments, he himself admitted during the investigation that the amount would never have been so high. It is therefore an intention of unlawful enrichment. The court sees the fact that he did not consciously write the e-mails and had a “film tear” as a protective claim.
Even if you feel bullied, you don’t have to be abusive right away, explains the presiding judge. The accused would have been free to go to the labor court. In addition, he had shown no remorse regarding the expression “Nazi Sau”. In the investigation, he said it was his duty to confront Nazis.
Even if the expert was unable to make an exact diagnosis due to a lack of cooperation, the court trusts her finding of a mental disorder. The report also clearly states that the probability of new crimes without treatment is high. For this reason, the preventive detention will also be extended until the accused has a structure and can start inpatient therapy.
Judgment DG220076 of August 25, 2022, not yet final.