Thousands of fake Covid-19 certificates uncovered in Switzerland
The lastest fake certificate scam is the largest yet to be discovered in Switzerland.
Keystone / Laurent Gillieron
Criminal proceedings have been launched in Switzerland following the discovery of around 8,000 fake Covid-19 vaccination certificates that were issued in the eastern canton of St Gallen.
This content was published on
1 minute
swissinfo.ch/mga
Español
es
Miles de certificados COVID-19 falsos descubiertos en Suiza
Police believe the forged documents were handed out by people working at private test centres that had access to the national certificate issuing system. It is assumed that the fraud was a money-making scam with recipients being charged for the fakes.
This is not the first time that police have uncovered fake certificate scams in Switzerland, but it is the largest operation that has come to light so far.
Fraudulent schemes in cantons Vaud, Geneva and Schaffhausen have involved no more than a few hundred certificates.
The St Gallen fake certificates have all been cancelled, the authorities said on Thursday. No forgeries had been issued from official cantonal testing centres.
Both the people who made the forgeries and anyone who knowingly accepted them face potential jail terms or fines if found guilty.
Around 67% of the Swiss population is fully vaccinated against coronavirus and 20% of people have received booster jabs so far.
The number of new infections has been creeping up in recent weeks, reaching 11,451 cases on Thursday.
On December 20, the government ordered fresh restrictions on public and private gatherings. The new rules are largely aimed at unvaccinated people.
More
More
Coronavirus: the situation in Switzerland
This content was published on
An overview of the latest Covid-related information in the Alpine nation.
Bodycams: essential for good law enforcement, or a privacy risk?
Did you ever come across bodycams in your place of residence and if so, how do you think the use of bodycams alter the relationship between the public and (transport) police?
This content was published on
Swiss wheelchair racer Catherine Debrunner won the 5,000 metres to bring home Switzerland’s first gold medal at the Paralympics in Paris.
Covid-19: Switzerland tightens restrictions for the unvaccinated
This content was published on
Switzerland to restrict access to restaurants, bars, cultural and sports facilities to vaccinated people or those recently recovered from infection.
This content was published on
Around 750 appeals, many identical, have been filed with the cantons against next Sunday’s vote in Switzerland on the Covid-19 law.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.