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| Even if guilty, it probably won't lead to a criminal record for the very reason you state. Fine has to be 6k plus IIRC. | |
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There are essentially three categories of prosecution:
- Verbrechen: felonies, serious crimes;
- Vergehen: misdemeanours;
- Übertretungen: transgressions, very mild violations of the law.
Theft at the level of the OP's friend will probably be treated as an Übertretung, attracting a fine, maybe also some community service. As long as the fine is less than CHF 5,000, there shouldn't be an entry in the criminal record.
Convictions for Verbrechen (felonies) and Vergehen (higher level misdemeanours) result in an automatic criminal record. Additionally, punishment by a fine over CHF 5,000, community service >180 hours, or a prison sentence of a year or more—even if only for an Übertretung—all result in an entry in the criminal record.
An entry is made in the criminal record for Verbrechen right at the start, when proceedings are still pending. (Theft of one bicycle is gemerally not prosecuted as a Verbrechen.) This is because almost all convictions in Switzerland occur automatically, without a court case. Basically, if you are charged, you will initially be convicted. If you don't like that outcome, you need to appeal. Note, however, that pending felony proceedings do not appear in the
extract of the criminal record—the extract that an individual can request for employment purposes, for example—but do appear in the
complete record which can be viewed by certain governmental departments, including Immigration.
Entries in the criminal record remain for a minimum of ten years. They may be erased from the extract in as few as two years, but they remain visible to those governmental departments as long as they remain on the complete record.
So, back to the OP and his friend. The likely alternative outcomes are:
- Prosecuted as an Übertretung: no criminal record unless an epically huge fine is imposed;
- Prosecuted as a Vergehen: automatic criminal record for at least ten years, regardless of the penalty imposed.