Prosecutor freezes bank accounts of former Swissair managers
Mon Mar 17, 6:45 AM ET

ZURICH, Switzerland - A Zurich prosecutor said Monday he has frozen the bank accounts of former top managers of collapsed national airline Swissair as part of a criminal investigation into the company.



Hanspeter Hirt Monday confirmed a report by the weekly SonntagsZeitung that the assets of Philippe Bruggisser, Eric Honegger and Georges Schorderet have been temporarily frozen.

The funds may eventually be used to cover expenses tied to criminal charges in connection with the collapse of Swissair in 2001. The amounts involved are "low six-digit Swiss franc figures" in each case, Hirt said.

Bruggisser and Honegger are both former chief executives of Swissair and Schorderet is a former chief financial officer. They, along with another former CEO, Mario Corti, and an unidentified fifth person face criminal charges including alleged falsification of documents.

Corti's accounts weren't frozen after he paid 150,000 francs (US$110,000) into a blocked account as a sign of his willingness to cooperate.

Hirt said it is unclear whether the money now frozen will be used. He said some of the managers have filed a complaint against the account freeze.

Heavily indebted Swissair collapsed in October 2001. A new national carrier, Swiss, was built on its remains after the country's government and corporate sector injected billions of francs into the new company.

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Can other revelations be far behind? 'Nuff said.