World · Latin America · 4 hrs ago
Swiss court upholds 14-year sentence for former Guatemalan police chief
Switzerland’s highest court upheld Erwin Sperisen’s 14-year sentence for aiding the murders of seven prisoners in Guatemala.
Sperisen is a Swiss-Guatemalan dual citizen who led Guatemala’s police from 2004 to 2007.
The case concerns a 2006 police operation to retake Pavón prison, where authorities had lost control.
The court found the prisoners were deliberately killed, not shot during a clash with police or other forces.
It said Sperisen’s conduct showed he knew about and approved a plan to execute them, and that he failed to order an internal investigation.
The ruling confirms a 2024 Geneva court sentence after years of legal proceedings and earlier appeals.
Sperisen’s lawyers say they plan to challenge the latest ruling at the European Court of Human Rights, where he has also filed a separate complaint over the length of the case.
Switzerland’s Federal Supreme Court upheld Erwin Sperisen’s 14-year prison sentence for aiding murder in seven cases.
The sentence was imposed by the Geneva cantonal court in 2024 over the deaths of seven inmates during a 2006 prison operation in Guatemala.
The court said the inmates were not killed in a gunfight and that their deaths were planned.
Sperisen’s lawyers said they intend to challenge the latest ruling at the European Court of Human Rights.
Sperisen, a Swiss-Guatemalan dual citizen, was Guatemala’s police director from 2004 to 2007.
- Who
- Erwin Sperisen, former police director of Guatemala.
- What
- Switzerland’s Federal Supreme Court rejected his appeal and upheld a 14-year sentence for aiding murder in seven cases.
- When
- The ruling was reported on October 22, 2026. The sentence was imposed in 2024.
- Where
- The case was heard in Switzerland and concerns deaths at Pavón prison in Guatemala.
- Why
- The court said the seven inmates’ deaths were planned executions, not deaths in a gunfight.
Swiss Federal Supreme Court
Sperisen and his lawyers
Ruling
Swiss Federal Supreme Court
The court upheld Sperisen’s 14-year sentence for aiding murder in seven cases.
Sperisen and his lawyers
His lawyers said the court failed to consider the acquittal of an alleged accomplice in Austria.
Next steps
Swiss Federal Supreme Court
The court confirmed the Geneva cantonal court’s 2024 decision.
Sperisen and his lawyers
Sperisen’s lawyers said they plan to take the latest ruling to the European Court of Human Rights.
Sperisen served as Guatemala’s police director.
A police operation to retake Pavón prison left seven inmates dead.
A Geneva criminal court convicted Sperisen of murder linked to the operation and sentenced him to life imprisonment.
Switzerland’s Federal Supreme Court partially overturned the ruling and sent the case back to Geneva.
The Geneva cantonal court sentenced Sperisen to 14 years for aiding murder in seven cases.
Switzerland’s Federal Supreme Court upheld the 14-year sentence.
- Sentence
- 14 years
- Victims
- Seven inmates
- Prison
- Pavón, Guatemala
- Geneva cantonal court ruling
- 2024
- Sperisen’s role
- Guatemala’s police director from 2004 to 2007