A former UBS banker and a local religious leader has been sentenced to seven years in jail for embezzlement.
The 44-year-old, identified only as Daniel, was in court in Sankt Gallen. He put himself forward as an upstanding member of the community as he was also head of the Council of Elders of a religious group in Toggenburg.
Prosecutors said the man ripped off family and friends, despite earning a good salary. He promised to invest his brother’s money – but instead spent it on his lavish wedding.
He lost his job at UBS in 2018 and before taking another position in Paris on a salary of EUR 323,000 – he continued to claim unemployment for a total of CHF 80,000.
Prosecutors told the court he sucked the family dry ‘like a vampire.’
In addition to the seven years locked up – he has to pay back CHF 1.5m.