In a groundbreaking verdict, a local court in Germany has convicted three men for blackmailing Michael Schumacher's family. The incident came to light when Schumacher's wife, Corinna, filed a complaint of receiving an extortion call with unidentified men threatening to leak sensitive images and videos of the F1 legend.
Last year, Corinna Schumacher filed a police complaint in Switzerland after she received an anonymous extortion call, which demanded her to pay €15 million, or else the callers would release 900 images and 600 private videos of the 55-year-old's medical condition.
However, upon Corinna's complaint, a case was filed at a local court in Germany. The trial began in June 2024, and in February 2025, three men, Yilmaz T., his son, Daniel, and former security guard of the Schumacher family, Markus F., have been convicted of the criminal charges.
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According to BBC, the court ruled that Markus, who worked with the family 18 months before the accident, stole two hard drives and shared them with the father-son duo. The drives contained hundreds of images and videos of Michael Schumacher's sensitive state.
They demanded €15 million from the family and threatened to leak the media files on the dark web. While one drive still remains to be recovered, the court sentenced Yilmaz to three years in prison.
His son, Daniel, has been handed a six-month suspended sentence, meaning he will avoid prison time and serve his sentence on probation. The guard, Markus, has also been charged with a two-year suspended sentence as the judge blamed him for starting the extortion bid.
Schumacher, a seven-time F1 champion and a former F1 legend, met a near-fatal accident while skiing in 2023. He sustained injuries on his head, and since then, gis family has kept him away from the public eye.
Michael's wife, Corinna, had urged the media to let the family have privacy and maintain the dignity of the former legend.
Michael Schumacher's family to challenge the sentence
Though the German police and court have identified and punished three perpetrators for an extortion bid on Michael Schumacher's family, the family is still unsatisfied with the verdict.
Yilmaz, the main accused, has been charged with three years in prison, whereas Daniel and Markus will serve suspended sentences. However, the family lawyer, Thilo Damm told the BBC that they will challenge the verdict as the punishment is lenient.
"We do not agree with everything the court said. You can rest assured that we will exhaust all legal possibilities at our disposal. We don't know where the missing hard drive is. I don't have a crystal ball, but there is the possibility of another threat through the backdoor."
Michael Schumacher’s family believes that if the lost hard drives land in the wrong hands, it could lead to severe repercussions for the family.
