Willi Weber attacked and robbed in his villa in Stuttgart
Fear for Weber
Moments of terror unfolded on Tuesday night in Stuttgart, specifically in the residential district of Kräherwald. Three men, each wearing a balaclava, broke into the villa of Willi Weber, the former manager of seven-time Formula 1 World Champion Michael Schumacher. According to what the 83-year-old told the German newspaper Bild, the intruders first threatened Willi Weber, his ex-wife and a housekeeper who was inside the home, using weapons.
The assault and the shock
Afterwards, all three victims were tied up and assaulted while the thieves forced open and emptied the safes in the house. They also stole cash and jewellery worth several thousand euros. Willi Weber recounted the scene in distress: “I have a black eye, the police are here talking to me. I feel terrible. I am completely in shock.”
Weber now intends to move to Frankfurt together with his partner, while the villa has already been placed on the real-estate market.
At the end of the 1980s, Willi Weber brought a young and rising Michael Schumacher into his Formula 3 team, becoming his manager throughout the German driver’s rise to the top of motorsport. Their partnership continued through Michael Schumacher’s greatest successes, and only in 2010 — the year the ‘Kaiser’ decided to return to Formula 1 with Mercedes — did their paths separate with the arrival of Sabine Kehm.
Despite the split, Willi Weber has always been regarded as one of the key architects of Schumacher’s extraordinary success. Tuesday night’s violent home invasion marks a distressing new chapter for the man who once ruled the F1 paddock.
Police in Stuttgart have launched a full investigation into the aggravated robbery and are appealing for any witnesses in the Kräherwald area.
