Key legal question
Whether first-instance costs could be charged to an acquitted defendant under Art. 426(2) StPO.
Extracted holding
Yes, because the appellant had unlawfully and culpably triggered the prosecution by retaining funds without authorization as self-help.
Extracted reasoning
A cost award after acquittal is permissible when the accused clearly breaches a legal duty in a blameworthy way and thereby causes the investigation. The appellant took and kept money without authority, used it to satisfy his own claims, and thus triggered the criminal complaint.