Michael Schumacherâs ex-bodyguard jailed as £12m blackmail plot foiled by police
Michael Schumacherâs trusted former aide is set to be jailed for two years after a £12m blackmail plot was foiled by German police.
Schumacherâs ex-bodyguard Markus Fritsche had been accused of attempting to extort the stunning fee from the F1 iconâs family. It was alleged that Fritsche had threatened to release 1,500 images, 200 videos and extensive personal medical notes about the German – who has not been seen in public since his 2013 skiing accident.
All of that information was allegedly contained on four USB sticks and two hard drives that Fritsche had taken from the Schumacher home after being told to leave their employment. He then enlisted the help of long-term friend Yilmaz Tozturkan and his IT expert son, Lins.
But the plot fell apart when Tozturkan and his son were arrested by German police in June of last year after being placed under surveillance
The trio have now found out their punishments after a trial in Wuppertal, Germany, came to an end. Fritsche has been sentenced to two years in jail after being convicted of attempting to blackmail.
His associate Tozturkan, who is already in jail for an unrelated crime, has been given a further three years despite suggestions from the Schumacher family that he was deserving of five. Lins was handed a six-month suspended sentence. The duo both denied the allegations put towards them and claimed they were offering the family a âbusiness dealâ.
Speaking before the verdict was announced, Tozturkan said: âI’m very sorry and ashamed for what I have done. It was a very disgusting thing. I take full responsibility.â
Thilo Damm, the Schumacher family lawyer, said they planned to appeal the âlenient sentencesâ. He added: âWe do not agree with everything the court said. You can rest assured that we will exhaust all legal possibilities at our disposal.
âWe don’t know where the missing hard drive is, I don’t have a crystal ball but so there is the possibility of another threat through the backdoor.â
A number of details had emerged about the multi-million pound plot before the trial. It was claimed that Tozturkan used a withheld number to call the family about the material on June 3.
The plotters then allegedly sent four images to the Schumacher family just over a week later, giving them a month deadline to cough up the money or they would release the content onto the dark web. The money was intended to be sent over two instalments at the office of the Schumacher family lawyer.
But the plot fell apart just a week later as Tozturkan and his son were arrested by German police on June 19 after being placed under surveillance. A joint investigation by Swiss and German police was completed in September.
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