Prosecutors in Wuppertal have officially filed charges against three men accused of blackmailing the family of Formula 1 legend Michael Schumacher. The suspects allegedly threatened to release private family data unless they were paid millions.
Michael Schumacher’s family, led by his wife Corinna, has managed his affairs since his severe skiing accident in 2013. Among those charged is a former employee responsible for digitizing personal family photos and videos. This individual allegedly leaked sensitive material to the other two accused—a father and son from Wuppertal.
Investigators claim the duo demanded €15 million (around $17 million) for the return of the private data, threatening to post it on the dark web if the Schumacher family refused. After tracing calls made to the family, authorities arrested the suspects and recovered hard drives and USB sticks containing the stolen content.
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The charges include serious counts of attempted blackmail and privacy law violations. It is now up to the Wuppertal district court to decide whether the case will proceed to trial.
This is not the first blackmail attempt targeting the Schumachers. In 2017, a 25-year-old man received a suspended sentence for a similar case.
“In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count, but the life in your years.” — Abraham Lincoln
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