Bouncer, 33, who killed Brit heiress girlfriend in Switzerland has 18-year sentence INCREASED after appealing conviction
AN evil bouncer who was jailed for 18 years after strangling his British heiress girlfriend has had his sentenced increased by six months.
Marc Schatzle, 33, was locked up in October 2021 for the murder of Anna Reed, 22, and appealed against the sentence and conviction last month.
Anna was found dead in their luxury hotel room in Lugano, Switzerland, three years ago.
During his trial, German-born Schatzle and his defence team claimed she died in a sex game which went wrong and pleaded for the conviction to be changed to manslaughter, which would have meant less time behind bars.
However, the Court of Appeal in Lugano increased the sentence by six months.
A spokesperson said: “The reasoning will be given at a later date but from the evidence heard in the appeal they decided a longer sentence was warranted.”
In addition, the court ruled that once he had served his sentence he will be deported and prevented from entering Switzerland for 14 years, instead of the original 12, meaning he will be unable to visit his child.
Schatzle, who has ‘Warrior’ tattooed on his face and the acronym ACAB – which stands for ‘All Cops are B*******’ – said at his appeal: “What happened was an accident, I never wanted Anna’s death.
“Despite what the prosecutor says, I have said sorry, I’ve said sorry to Anna’s family, and I’ve said sorry to my family for causing this disaster.
“I didn’t do what the prosecution says, it was just a banal accident, I accept I inadvertently caused her death.”
As he spoke, a former girlfriend, named only as Michelle, wept.
Earlier in the court proceedings, he was allowed to kiss and cuddle her during breaks.
At his original trial last year, the court heard how he used Anna’s credit card to go on a spending spree after admitting he “liked the finer things in life”.
The jury heard how he met Anna in Thailand in February 2019 and she had splurged £50,000 on him, paying for hotels, restaurants and clothes while they were together.
She had gone to the Far East after her dad, Clive, had given her an around the world ticket as a 21st birthday present.
Anna had also inherited £250,000 from her mum who died in a 2016 domestic accident.
Schatzle claimed in court Anna died after he had placed a towel around her throat during consensual sex in the bathroom of their five-star hotel La Palme au Lac in Locarno in April 2019.
Judge Mauro Emani though slammed him as a “liar” and a “dangerous man” and sentenced him to 18 years.
At the appeal last month, prosecutor Petra Canonica Alexakis blasted Schatzle, saying he had been “lying for three years” and his claims of an “accident and sex game tragically gone wrong” were unfounded.
She said: “He is a killer and the first trial confirmed this. The first trial didn’t believe it was an erotic game and an accident.
“There is nothing to confirm his version of events and he has refused to cooperate with investigators from the beginning.
“If things had gone as he claims, then one would have excepted his attitude to be different but there is nothing to suggest he and Anna Reed practised erotic asphyxiation or sadomasochism.”
Ms Canonica Alexakis described how the telephone cable in their room had been found ripped from the wall by investigators and Schatzle had insisted it was already broken.
But she said: “We know that’s not true because he ordered room service from reception, and this was confirmed by the hotel staff.
“Instead, he ripped the cable, maybe Anna was trying to make a call or maybe he did it to stop her calling for help.”
The prosecutor went on to highlight how there were no wounds on Schatzle inflicted by Anna, as she weighed just 55kg compared to his weight of 105kg and slightly built and her fingernails were short.
Ms Canonica Alexakis added: “Anna hated liars and she hated being lied to and the night she died she had learnt what sort of man Schatzle was.
“She had been warned about him by a previous boyfriend after he had been tipped by an ex-girl friend of Schatzle, who said he had manipulated and used her, lying continuously.
“The night Anna died there was no sex game and there was no attempt at a joke by hiding her credit card in a lift.
“She died because of an intentional gesture and the medical report revealed wound to her gums consistent with a hand being placed over her mouth.”
Ms Canonica Alexakis said that on the night of Anna’s death Schatzle had “only seven Francs in his account and 20 Francs in his wallet”.
She added: “But he knew that a Visa card Anna had was preloaded with 25,000 Swiss Francs which may not seem much but to a man who has nothing it was enough to use to flee the country.
“That’s why after killing Anna he set about falsifying the scene. He hid her credit card in the lift to retrieve later because we know guests along the corridor heard heavy footsteps that morning.
“He put her body in a bath of warm water to delay the time of death, but the paramedics were suspicious when they arrived because of the colour and texture of her skin.
“Schatzle waited to raise the alarm, maybe as much as two hours because he wanted to take the time to save his own skin.
“He simulated an accident in the bathroom before raising the alarm but let’s remember how he raised the alarm he took the elevator to the reception.
“Would you not rush down the stairs if you were in that situation instead of waiting for the lift? And it was noticed he had taken the time to tie his shoes and get dressed.”
Ms Canonica Alexakis continued: “Anna was certainly disinhibited when it came to sex but she was not into rough sex or erotic asphyxiation her friends and ex-boyfriend have confirmed it.
“Schatzle was not into sado masochism or rough sex two of his ex partners have confirmed this it’s only he who says they were but we all know he is a liar.”
