Self-appointed crime fighter causes ruckus in parliament
Stamm (right) has been a parliamentarian for nearly 30 years.
Keystone/Peter Schneider
A Swiss parliamentarian is currently attracting considerable media attention after he claimed to have handled cocaine and fake currency in the parliament building.
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Luzi Stamm, a former judge and trained lawyer, told local television channel Tele M1 on Friday that he took a suitcase full of counterfeit money worth €1 million (CHF1.1 million) to the parliament building last December.
He said he had the notes, which belonged to one of his clients, checked by experts but refused to elaborate, citing attorney-client privilege.
Earlier this week, Stamm told the media that he bought one gram of cocaine from a busker in the streets of the capital Bern and stashed the drugs in the parliament building overnight. He said he called the police the next morning to report the incident.
Stamm said he acquired the cocaine for about CHF45 to fight against drugs.
“My aim is to destroy the cocaine trade in Switzerland,” he was quoted in the Aargauer ZeitungExternal link newspaper.
The 66-year-old member of the conservative right Swiss People’s Party has been a member of the House of Representatives since 1991.
He’s due to step down later this year as he can’t stand in the October parliamentary elections due to party rules. However, there is speculation that Stamm might try to find a way of extending his political career.
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