A BOUNCER on trial accused of murdering a Brit heiress has claimed in court he accidentally strangled her with a towel while having sex on a hotel bathroom floor.
Debt-ridden Marc Schätzle denies he intended to kill Anna Reed, 22, after she threatened to cut off his luxury lifestyle.
Millionaire horse trainer's daughter Anna met tattooed German Schätzle, 32, in Thailand on a round-the-world trip and then funded their travels together.
She was pronounced dead after he called paramedics to room 501 of the luxury La Palma Au Lac hotel in Muralto, Switzerland, in April 2019.
Yesterday the accused – referred to in court as Dirk W. – told the trial she enjoyed choking games during sex.
He said during questioning by a judge: "We had sex on the bathroom floor.
"I put a hand towel around Anna's neck. Then I pressed on it with my hands, as we had done a hundred times before.
"Suddenly she stopped moving, her tongue was sticking out. I tried to resuscitate her."
Prosecutors reject his account and claim he killed her for her money, knowing she had around £25,000 in her account.
They said the trashed state of the room and screams heard by other hotel guests were evidence of a violent argument.
Prosecutor Petra Canonica Alexakis said: "On the night she died, there was no sex, there was just a femicide."
She said a guest in the adjoining room heard screaming, and then heard Schätzle stomping onto the balcony around 2am – four hours before he called for help.
Crime scene detectives found shattered fragments of glass and pottery and water stains.
Tables had been turned over and cups smashed, the court heard. There was also the sound of him crying.
Pictures of Anna with her family had been ripped up and scattered over the bed. And a ring that he had given her was lying on the floor.
The telephone cable had also been ripped out of the wall, which the prosecutor argued was another sign of a heated row.
It was also found Schätzle had an injury to his hand, while Anna had injuries to her gums.
Prosecutors allege this indicates he had held his hand over her mouth rather than strangling her with a towel in a sex game.
Anna also had scratches on her that indicated a fight, and bruises on her body and face, the court heard.
Both had taken cocaine and drunk alcohol that night, it was said.
Anna, from Harrogate, had been spending thousands a month on her travels with Schätzle, using cash she got for her 21st birthday, the court has heard.
But she had threatened to stop funding him after learning he had racked up £40,000 debts on drink, drugs and designer gear, it is alleged.
Anna's missing credit card was found four months later hidden behind a panel in a lift.
Schätzle claims he put it there as a prank.
The dad of two also told police he has had 400 lovers, but in court said he had just had "several".
He denies murder and theft. The trial in Lugano continues.
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