Swiss Court Denies Final Release Appeal for Notorious "Sadist of Romont"

Switzerland's Federal Tribunal has definitively rejected the latest bid for freedom by the "sadist of Romont," a notorious inmate who has been incarcerated since 1987. This marks the twelfth time the man, now 67, has sought conditional release, with all attempts proving unsuccessful. His most recent appeal to the Federal Tribunal was dismissed, upholding previous decisions by cantonal judges.

The individual gained infamy in the 1980s for committing several murders, each preceded by sexual abuse of adolescents. He was formally sentenced to life imprisonment in October 1989 by the Tribunal de l'Entremont in the canton of Valais. His arrest in May 1987 initiated a decades-long period of confinement, during which he has consistently been denied parole.

In his latest legal challenge, the condemned man also requested his life sentence be converted into a therapeutic institutional measure and sought a progressive sentence execution plan. However, the Federal Tribunal declared these specific requests inadmissible, as they had not been raised before the cantonal judges. The court also dismissed arguments related to his alleged poor health, stating it had not been raised at the appropriate level.

The Federal Tribunal concurred with the cantonal court's assessment that the individual continues to pose a "very high risk of recidivism," particularly concerning offenses against the life and integrity of minors. While his appeals for release and sentence modifications were denied, the Federal Tribunal did grant him legal aid, which had been refused by the lower cantonal courts. This legal assistance is independent of his ongoing requests for conditional release and supervised outings, which have also been rejected.

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the condemned man still presents a very high risk of recidivism concerning offenses against the life and integrity of minors.