A British heiress who was found dead in her hotel room in Switzerland was killed by her German boyfriend for her money despite his claim that she died in a sex game, a court has heard.
Anna Reed, 22, was discovered in the bathroom of her hotel room at the Hotel la Palma au Lac in Locarno, Switzerland, in April 2019, after her partner Marc Schatzle called the emergency services.
A post-mortem examination concluded that Ms Reed had died from strangulation and had also suffered small cuts and fractures.
This year, Schatzle, who previously worked as a bouncer in various pubs and nightclubs on the Swiss-German border, went on trial charged with murdering the 22-year-old.
Anna Reed (pictured with Marc Schatzle before her death) , 22, was found dead in her hotel room in Switzerland, in April 2019
During a trial in Lugano a court heard how Schatzle had debts of more than £40,000 and allegedly knew his girlfriend had ‘more than £25,000 in her account’.
Five months after Ms Reed’s death, a credit card belonging to the 22-year-old was discovered hidden in a panel of the hotel elevator.
Investigators suspected it was stolen by Schatzle, who claimed he hid it there as a joke.
But a prosecution source told The Times: ‘The bank card was very carefully hidden away and quite clearly it was to be collected later. The claim that she died in a sex game was never convincing.
‘We believe she was murdered for financial gain.’
They added that the German father-of-two claimed it was an ‘erotic game that went wrong’.
On the night that Ms Reed was discovered by paramedics, other guests in the hotel described how they heard ‘furniture being pushed nosily’ and ‘breaking glass.’
One person told The Sun: ‘I heard breaking glass and furniture being pushed noisily around the room
They added: ‘I wanted to go and say something but thought it was too dangerous.’
Following her death, Ms Reed’s former school, Ashville College in Harrogate, said in a statement: ‘We are saddened to learn of the death of former pupil Anna Reed, and our thoughts are with her family.’
Marc Schatzle, who has denied deliberately killing Miss Reed, is believed to have met Ms Reed in Thailand in February 2019
Ms Reed (left and right) had been enjoying a round-the-world trip which she received from her father as a present for her 21st birthday
On the night that Ms Reed was discovered by paramedics, other guests at the Hotel la Palma au Lac in Locarno, Switzerland, described how they heard ‘furniture being pushed nosily’ and ‘breaking glass’
Schatzle, who has denied deliberately killing Ms Reed, is believed to have met her in Thailand in February 2019 while travelling.
It is understood that Ms Reed, who finished university and was taking a year out, had been enjoying a round-the-world trip which she received from her father as a present for her 21st birthday.
After the pair entered a relationship, Ms Reed’s spending ‘jumped considerably’, a court heard.
On the evening of her death, the couple had shared a £100 bottle of champagne over dinner before returning to their hotel.
They were then pictured smiling on the terrace of their penthouse room just hours before Ms Reed’s death.
Schatzle, who has a ‘Warrior’ tattooed over his eyebrow, worked as a bouncer in various pubs and nightclubs on the Swiss-German border.
One source told a Swiss newspaper at the time: ‘Nobody knows how he could afford all the travel. Something can’t be right.’
Schatzle denies murder and the trial continues.