The Gefängnis Zürich (Zürich Prison) is a prison in the city of Zürich, Switzerland, located at the Rotwandstrasse.
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The Gefängnis Zürich opened in 1916, and has been extended several times, most recently in 1991 with the establishment of a provisional facility with 34 beds in one of two courtyards. It is the largest district jail of the Canton of Zürich, and has a capacity of 170 prisoners (including an 18-bed ward for female prisoners) and 48 employees (as of 2009). Its director is Markus Epple. It is located in the immediate vicinity of 5 general and 2 specialized district attorney offices. Most of the prisoners are remandees, with only a few convicts serving sentences there.[1]
From 2004 to 2007 Vitaly Kaloyev was incarcerated in Zürich Prison on charges of killing air traffic controller Pieter Nielsen, who he blamed for the death of his wife and children in a mid-air collision. In 2007 he was released from prison and returned to his home in the Caucasus Republic.[2]
From 2004, Zürich Prison was the site of incarceration for Mohamed Achraf, a suspect in Spanish investigations into a failed bomb attack on Spain's National Court. Achraf spent some of his time within the prison in solitary confinement due to his status as a suspected terrorist.[3]
Since September 26, 2009, Roman Polanski has been incarcerated in the prison, according to several news media[4], pending his extradition hearing.
In 2008, a 17-year-old Swiss prisoner in remand on suspicion of driving offences, property offences and violent crimes strangled himself in his prison cell with scraps of cloth.[5]