Der «Schattenstaatsanwalt» im Fall Vincenz: Haben die Ankläger unsauber gearbeitet?

In the first week of the appeal trial against former Raiffeisen CEO Pierin Vincenz and his co-defendants, a constant issue has been the need for the defendants and their lawyers to speak louder for the court to hear them clearly. The main prosecutor, Marc Jean-Richard-Bressel, has been the only one to use his powerful voice during the proceedings.

It is revealed that Jean-Richard and Andreas Donatsch, dubbed the "Schattenstaatsanwalt" or "shadow prosecutor," had been collaborating on the indictment for over a year without the knowledge of the other parties involved. This cooperation has sparked heated debates in the Zürcher Obergericht courtroom, with the defense seeking to halt the entire process, arguing that it is no longer fair and that the entire indictment is invalid.

The Oberrichter Christian Prinz questioned the fairness of the proceedings, stating that the battle to avoid mistakes is never unfair if the prosecutor makes mistakes. Donatsch, a 74-year-old retired law professor, had a close relationship with several attorneys involved in the case, including Jean-Richard, who had supervised their academic works and reviewed his Habilitation thesis.

The defense questions the extent of Donatsch's involvement in the Vincenz case and whether a significant portion of the argumentation in the indictment may have originated from him. Despite the lack of information about the collaboration in the court documents, the defense demands that the Bundesgericht require the Obergericht to present the relevant documents.