The newly appointed commander of the Swiss Guards says that an inquiry cleared him of allegations that police previously under his command in the Swiss canton of Glarus had subjected asylum seekers to "sexual humiliation" during a raid. The Times Online reports that Daniel Rudolf Anrig, 36, was sworn in on Sunday at a Mass in the Vatican.
Born in Walenstadt, Switzerland, Commander Anrig is married with four children.
A graduate in civil and ecclesiastical law from the University of Fribourg in 1999, he was assistant Professor of Civil Law there until 2001.
He was then made head of the criminal police in the canton of Glarus, where in July 2003 he led a raid on the detention centre aimed at rooting out drugs traffickers.
Swiss police subsequently investigated complaints from Amnesty International that the raiding officers had smashed the doors down with hammers, had worn masks to hide their identities, and that the targeted immigrants were photographed after being made to strip and being bound hand and foot, with hoods placed over their heads.
A Swiss paper reported that the immigrants thought they were being attacked by neo Nazis. A 16 year old African jumped from a third floor window in panic, badly injuring his back.
However Commander Anrig told Der Spiegel that the allegations were unfounded, and that he had been cleared.
The inquiry found that police had not worn masks, and said that no photographs were taken.
Commander Anrig had to pay his legal costs of 400 Swiss francs, and the costs of those who brought the complaint, but the case had been dismissed.
"I have a clear conscience," Anrig said. The investigation concluded that the raid had been "rigorous" but police involved it in had "not intended to harm anyone".
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(Source: CTHN)