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Swiss blackmail 'gigolo' jailed | |
(about 1 hour later) | |
A Swiss man has been sentenced to six years in prison after pleading guilty to seducing several rich women in order to con them of millions of euros. | |
Helg Sgarbi - nicknamed by the media as the Swiss Gigolo - had faced up to 10 years in prison at the Munich trial. | |
His most prominent victim was Susanne Klatten, the heiress of the German car manufacturer BMW, who he had convinced to hand over nearly 7m euros. | |
Sgarbi had apologised to his victims in court, saying he regretted his actions. | |
He was surrounded by photographers as he entered the courtroom but sat expressionless while the charges of against him were read out. | |
He was accused of receiving a total of 9m euro ($11m; £8m) from his victims, none of whom were in court. | He was accused of receiving a total of 9m euro ($11m; £8m) from his victims, none of whom were in court. |
Prosecution spokesman Anton Winkler told reporters Sgarbi was accused of attempted blackmail, having told his victims he had "compromising material" on them. | Prosecution spokesman Anton Winkler told reporters Sgarbi was accused of attempted blackmail, having told his victims he had "compromising material" on them. |
I deeply regret what has happened and apologise to the aggrieved ladies in this public hearing Helg Sgarbi | |
"In one case he said the material was stolen from him by the Mafia and now the Mafia was asking for money, but later he asked directly for money," said Mr Winkler. | |
"In the second case he directly blackmailed his victim and told her that he had pictures. He told her 'You pay or I go public with the pictures and your privacy'." | "In the second case he directly blackmailed his victim and told her that he had pictures. He told her 'You pay or I go public with the pictures and your privacy'." |
Three of the women were referred to in the indictment by the initials H, S and R, to protect their identities, while Mrs Klatten had given permission for her name to be listed. | |
Sgarbi's lawyer, Egon Geis, told the court the charges were "at their core, true", before Sgarbi himself addressed the court. | |
"I deeply regret what has happened and apologise to the aggrieved ladies in this public hearing," he said. | |
Blackmail | Blackmail |
Mrs Klattern is not now expected to give evidence in courtProsecutors say Sgarbi met Mrs Klatten, a married business tycoon who owns a 12.5% stake in BMW, in an Austrian spa resort in July 2007. | |
In her witness statement, Mrs Klatten said he had been "charming, attentive and at the same time he seemed very sad". | |
"That stirred a feeling in me that we had something in common," she said. | |
They began an affair and in September that year, he convinced Mrs Klatten to give him nearly 7m euros by saying he needed to pay off the family of a girl he had injured in car accident in Florida. | |
The reclusive 46-year-old mother-of-three handed the money to him in a cardboard box in the basement of a Holiday Inn hotel in Munich. | |
HELG SGARBI | HELG SGARBI |
Aged 44, born in Zurich. | |
Originally had the surname Russak. | |
First reported to the police in 2001 by an 83-year old countess who had given him several million Euros. | |
Told his victims he was a "special Swiss representative in crisis zones". | |
Described by police as a smooth operator who knew how to win the trust of his victims. | |
Alleged to have connections with criminal gangs. | |
Described as a specialist in mergers and acquisitions in a glowing job reference from Credit Suisse, read out in court. | |
He is said to have not spoken about the cases since his arrest "out of respect to the ladies concerned". | He is said to have not spoken about the cases since his arrest "out of respect to the ladies concerned". |
He later asked her to give him a further 290m euros, which he said would enable them to start a new life together, but she refused to do so. | He later asked her to give him a further 290m euros, which he said would enable them to start a new life together, but she refused to do so. |
Mrs Klattern said he then threatened to make public a tape he had secretly made of them having sex in a Munich hotel room if he did not receive another 49m euros, a figure he later reduced to 14m. | Mrs Klattern said he then threatened to make public a tape he had secretly made of them having sex in a Munich hotel room if he did not receive another 49m euros, a figure he later reduced to 14m. |
In a blackmail letter, he is reported to have told Mrs Klatten: "While your risk is very high, my risks are irrelevant." | In a blackmail letter, he is reported to have told Mrs Klatten: "While your risk is very high, my risks are irrelevant." |
Mrs Klatten was one of a string of Sgarbi's alleged victims across Europe, who included the wealthy Countess Verena du Pasquier-Geubels, at 83 years old more than 50 years his senior. | |
He told the women he targeted he was a "special Swiss representative in crisis zones", which accounted for his sudden disappearances. | |
The countess reported him to the police in 2001 but later dropped the charges and died the following year. | |
The BBC's Steve Rosenberg in Munich says there has been a huge amount of media attention on the trial, which is being described as one of the most remarkable and sensational in German judicial history. | The BBC's Steve Rosenberg in Munich says there has been a huge amount of media attention on the trial, which is being described as one of the most remarkable and sensational in German judicial history. |
Sgarbi has not said where the money he is alleged to have received is being kept, or what has happened to the video he claims to have of Mrs Klatten. | |
He has also said nothing about Ernano Barreta, the man alleged to have been his accomplice, who is under investigation in Italy. | |
Before the trial, Sgarbi had been expected to face a sentence of up to 10 years. The prosecution have asked for a 9-year sentence, but the feeling is he will be given a reduced jail term because of his guilty plea, our correspondent says. |