Jihadist’s parents receive suspended sentences
Keystone-SDA
The parents of a young jihadist who left for Syria to join the Islamic State have been given suspended sentences by the Federal Criminal Court. They were found guilty of violating the law banning the Al Qaeda and Islamic State groups.
The mother received a 20-month prison sentence, suspended for two years. The father received a lighter sentence of eight months’ imprisonment, also suspended for the same period.
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The Attorney General’s Office had requested sentences of 24 and 18 months respectively, while the defense pleaded for acquittal. These sentences are not final and may be appealed to the Appeal Court of the Federal Criminal Court.
The costs of the proceedings, totalling over CHF75,000, will be borne in part by the two defendants. The mother, a 60-year-old dual national of Spain and Switzerland, will have to reimburse the CHF 12,000 to the government. The father, a 70-year-old Swiss citizen, will have to pay CHF13,000.
The two defendants were appearing before the Criminal Court on charges of having made payments totalling more than CHF50,000 francs to their son, who left for Syria in 2015. The latter is suspected of having joined the ranks of the Islamic State as a combatant.
Adapted from French by DeepL/ac
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