search-and-seizure switzerland money-laundering
What happens with seized money?
<p>Daniel the drug dealer was caught with 20.000€ of illegaly earned money while crossing the border into Switzerland. The money was covered in traces of all kinds of drugs, so the court did not believe any of his stories about where he got the money from (also, cash in excess of 10.000€ must be declared when crossing the border, as a measure against tax evasion). The court found him guilty of drug dealing, attempted money laundering and similar crimes and charged him with a fine of 1000Fr, plus court fees.</p>
<p>But what happens with the seized money? I can think of several options:</p>
<ul>
<li>It is returned to Daniel, deduced by the fine. (Unlikely, because in this case, the crime would have been worth it, as the fine is significantly lower than the cash earned)</li>
<li>The money is destroyed by the court (Destroying money is illegal in itself, though)</li>
<li>The money becomes property of the state (Sounds a bit weird, as this would make the state benefit from a crime)</li>
</ul>

<h2>The money is forfeited to the state</h2>
<p>This would normally be the case even if Daniel is acquitted. The proceeds of crime may be seized using forfeiture rules which require Daniel to prove that the suspect money is legitimate.</p>
