While doing his obligatory community service (Zivildienst) in a West German hospital in 1989, Rust stabbed a female co-worker who had rejected him. The victim barely survived. He was convicted of attempted manslaughter and sentenced to two and a half years in prison, but was released after 15 months.[13] Since then he has lived a fragmented life, describing himself as a "bit of an oddball."[14] After being released from court, he converted to Hinduism in 1996 to become engaged to a daughter of an Indian tea merchant.[15] In 2001, he was convicted of stealing a cashmere pullover and ordered to pay a fine of DM10,000, which was later reduced to DM600.[6][13] A further brush with the law came in 2005, when he was convicted of fraud and had to pay €1,500 for stolen goods.[13] In 2009 Rust described himself as a professional poker player.[16] Most recently, in 2012, he described himself as an analyst at a Zurich-based investment bank.[14]