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CRIME

Man arrested in Aargau quadruple murder case

Police have arrested a 33-year-old man over the brutal murder of four people that shocked the community of Rupperswil last December.

Published: 13 May 2016 15:30 CEST
Man arrested in Aargau quadruple murder case
Photo: Aargau cantonal police

The news was announced at a press conference held by police and the public prosecutor in the canton of Aargau on Friday afternoon.

The 33-year-old admitted the facts on Thursday, reported news agency ATS, giving a financial motive for the crime.

He may also have sexually abused one of the victims, said ATS.    

The man, a student who lived in Rupperswil, was unknown to police and did not know his victims, the authorities told the press.

Considered one of the most serious crimes the area has ever seen, the murders have been the subject of intense investigations since the four victims were found dead in a house in the commune of Rupperswil in December 2015.

A 48-year-old woman, her 13 and 19-year-old sons and the 21-year-old girlfriend of the elder son were bound with cables and stabbed to death before the house was set on fire, according to information released at the time.

Investigators discovered that the mother had withdrawn large sums of money from two separate ATMs in the hours before she died.

A team of around 40 police officers interviewed more than a hundred people and examined DNA evidence, but their investigations proved fruitless.

In February police issued a 100,000-franc reward for information, one of the largest rewards ever offered in Switzerland.

At Friday's press conference police said the arrested suspect may have been planning other murders.

 

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CRIME

‘Your permit is invalid’: How scammers in Switzerland target foreigners

Scores of foreign residents have received an email recently telling them their residency rights in Switzerland have been revoked.

Published: 26 April 2024 11:17 CEST
'Your permit is invalid': How scammers in Switzerland target foreigners

A number of foreign nationals, especially in the German-speaking part of the country, have received an official-looking letter, purportedly from the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) informing them that the Free Movement of People agreement between Switzerland and the EU has been nullified, and therefore “your residence permit is no longer valid.”

Faced with enquiries from concerned recipients, SEM responded that the letter is fake, advising recipients to ignore it and, above all, not to click on the QR code on the top.

“Fake letters from the SEM have been circulating since the beginning of this week,” the immigration authority said on its website as well as on X (formerly Twitter).  

“The letter has no impact on the recipient’s  residence status,” SEM added.

Fake jobs, real threats

However, this is only the latest scam perpetrated in the name of SEM.

There have been others in the past.

For instance, many foreigners have also received emails from addresses swissimmigration@consultant or eu_immigration@consultant, that pretend to be the Swiss immigration authority.

“In most cases, a fictitious job in the hotel industry is offered, with the senders demanding payment of 300 to 1,000 euros for a permit in Switzerland and for health and accident insurance,” SEM reported.

The first clue that this email doesn’t come from  SEM, which is part of Switzerland’s government, is that it is asking for payment in euros. If the scammers were smarter, they’d demand Swiss francs.

“These e-mails do not come from the SEM and should be considered as an attempt at fraud,” the agency said. 

Extortion attempt

And a few years ago, a number of foreigners received emails coming allegedly from SEM, Swiss border control authorities, or even the Federal Office of Police (Fedpol).

They threatened to revoke the victim’s residence permit or even expel them from the country altogether if they didn’t pay a certain sum of money into an anonymous account.

Needless to say, no government authority would ever resort to blackmail or demand payment for such ‘services’.

So a good rule to remember (for foreigners and Swiss alike) is that if threats and pressure are involved, letters / emails / phone calls ( WhatsUp messages are more than likely scams.
 
READ ALSO: The common scams foreigners in Switzerland need to be aware of 

Don’t respond

SEM as well as police urge everyone contacted by scammers, by whatever means to:

  • Ignore these messages by hanging up the phone and / or deleting emails, moving them to the Spam folder
  • Never give out your credit card number or bank account information to people you don’t know
  • If you did give your card number, contact your credit card company immediately to have the card blocked. Likewise, if you gave out your banking details, get in touch with your bank.
  • In the event of threats of extortion attempts, consider filing a criminal complaint. You can search for police stations in your area on the Police website. 
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