Swiss police said on Tuesday they arrested two people on charges of assisting a woman to use the unapproved device in Schaffhausen, a northern town near the German border, as per the Telegraph.
The capsule that resembles a coffin, which was developed by the controversial assisted-dying activist Dr. Philip Nitschke, is intended to kill its occupant by depriving them of oxygen as it fills with nitrogen gas.
According to the country's interior minister, the "Sarco suicide pod" is not compliant with Swiss law as it "does not meet the requirements of product safety." Such use of nitrogen, he said, is prohibited under the country's chemical regulations.
The Swiss organization Last Resort, which founded the suicide pod, confirmed the woman's death in a statement: "On Monday Sept 23, at approximately 4:01 pm local time, a 64-year-old woman from the midwest in the US died using the Sarco device."
Dr. Florian Willet, co-president of the firm, was present for the death, describing it as "peaceful, fast, and dignified." The woman, he said, was killed "under a canopy of trees, at a private forest retreat in the Canton of Schaffhausen close to the Swiss-German border." It's unclear if Dr. Willet was arrested, however, a Dutch newspaper confirmed that one of their photographers was among the detainees.
The unnamed woman reportedly sought death by suicide over yearslong suffering associated with "severe" immunodeficiencies that caused intense pain, the organization said.
As long as there is no selfish motive, it is not a criminal offense in Switzerland to assist another individual in dying. Nevertheless, numerous districts, including Schaffhausen, have threatened criminal proceedings in the event that the death capsule is used within their jurisdiction.
Federal councilor Elisabeth Baume-Schneifer reiterated the law on Monday, stating that the capsule is noncompliant and the use of nitrogen is illegal.
