Three suspects have been arrested in Germany for allegedly blackmailing Formula One legend Michael Schumacher. The Guardian reports that German prosecutors have filed a criminal complaint against the men.
According to investigators, the main suspect, a 53-year-old resident of the city of Wuppertal, demanded 15 million euros (more than 1.5 billion rubles) from the racer’s family, threatening to publish his personal photos and videos.
The material allegedly included photos of Michael Schumacher before and after a skiing accident in the French Alps in 2013, which left him with a severe traumatic brain injury. The 55-year-old has not been seen in public since.
The images were allegedly obtained from another German man, 53, who worked as a security guard for the Schumacher family until 2021. The person suspected of selling the material could face a serious prison sentence on charges of attempted blackmail and invasion of privacy.
Prosecutors said the prime suspect called an associate of the Schumacher family several times in June this year and demanded money. The man threatened to leak the footage to the dark web.
The main suspect has been charged with attempted blackmail and faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. His 30-year-old son is also accused of being an accessory to blackmail by creating an untraceable email address to which samples of blackmail material were sent to the Schumacher family.
We have previously written about what is known about Michael Schumacher’s son. Read about it here.
Source: People Talk
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
