Neighborhood dispute in Bülach ZH Death threat over lawnmower leads to penalty order

In the district of Bülach, a man frightened his neighbors. Now he has been sentenced.

A 32-year-old Swiss man moved into a detached house in the district of Bülach ZH three years ago and quickly caused unrest in the neighborhood with his conspicuous and aggressive behaviour.

From the outset, he showed increasing neglect, isolated himself and frightened off his housemates by shouting loudly and banging against walls, which led to several police interventions, as reported by the Zürcher Unterländer newspaper.

Particularly alarming was an incident in which he threatened the parents of a neighbor with death in a letter for allegedly mowing the lawn too loudly. The situation was further exacerbated in January 2023 when he massively insulted a woman outside a Coop store and threw a shopping basket at her twice.

Public prosecutor's office had the man arrested

According to a now legally valid penalty order obtained by Landbote, the neighbors were finally frightened when the man began uploading videos to his YouTube channel in June 2023. In these recordings, he showed himself wearing a mask in his cellar, throwing obscene swear words around and stabbing soft toys with a butcher's knife. In his videos, he also made specific threats against his neighbors, suggesting that he would douse them with a can of petrol and set them on fire.

The public prosecutor's office finally responded to the persistent threats and had the man arrested in April 2023. He was sentenced to a fine of 3,600 francs, divided into 120 daily rates, for "frightening the public". The probation period is three years. During this time, he must undergo psychiatric-psychotherapeutic treatment.

"Film analyses" as justification

He was also ordered to pay the costs of the proceedings and various confiscated items, including masked dolls and tools, are to be destroyed.

Despite the conviction, the man sees himself as an artist and claims that a conspiracy between the police and the public prosecutor's office led to his punishment. The videos with the dolls were "film analyses". His YouTube channel is still active, but only one video is still available in which he announces a "comeback" for 2027 - the year in which his probation period expires.