Bodog Beat

Susanne Klatten, Germany's richest woman, will see her gigolo blackmailer go on trial tomorrow. (AP Images)

Although Susanne Klatten is Germany’s wealthiest woman she has traditionally kept a low profile. That all had to change however, when she made the hard decision to expose the gigolo she had been having an affair with – Helg Sgarbi – to the police for trying to blackmail her.

Klatten, a married mother of three, is worth between €9 and €10 billion and is a major shareholder in BMW. She met Sgarbi in Austria while on vacation in June of 2007 and their affair began a month later. Sgarbi secretly video taped their sexual encounters and then tried to blackmail her.

Initially he was somewhat successful. In September, he allegedly told Klatten that he needed 7 million euros because he had injured a little girl in a car crash in Florida. She gave him the money and ended the relationship soon after that.

According to prosecutors, Sgarbi then threatened to send compromising video footage of them to the media and her husband. He initially demanded 49 million euros for his silence but then reduced it to 14 million with a deadline of Jan. 15, 2008.

By this time Klatten had already contacted police, which ultimately led to Sgarbi’s arrest.

Helg Sgarbi’s trial begins tomorrow as he is accused of not only blackmailing Susanne Kaltten but also three other wealthy German women including Countess Verena du Pasquier-Geubels who was 83 when they met.

The Countess had notified police about Sgarbi blackmailing her but later dropped the charges.
Sgarbi wasn’t so lucky when it came to trying to blackmail from Susanne Klatten however, as he now faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in jail.