Since his disappearance during a solo excursion in the Alps on April 7, 2018, Karl-Erivan Haub, then 58, has long been believed to have died in a skiing accident. However, new evidence suggests that he might be alive and residing with a younger woman in Moscow. The information was reported by several international media outlets, including the New York Post.
An investigation by the state prosecutor’s office in Cologne has been initiated following allegations that Haub’s brother, Christian, provided false information by claiming he had no knowledge indicating that his brother could still be alive, as reported by the Daily Beast. This inquiry stems from a criminal complaint filed by journalists from RTL who were investigating Haub’s disappearance. Liv von Boetticher, an investigative journalist, informed Capital magazine that she was aware of photos purportedly showing Haub in Moscow in 2021, the same year he was legally declared dead.
These photos, according to Boetticher, were obtained by an Israeli-American company hired by Christian Haub and two internal investigators working for him. The resemblance between Haub and the person in the images was reportedly around 90%, according to a Stern magazine report from March 2023. Boetticher asserted that Christian Haub had access to these photos when he stated under oath to the Cologne District Court in May 2021 that he had “no reliable evidence” that his brother was still alive.
She also insisted that there is “strong evidence that [Karl-Erivan Haub] could have caused his disappearance intentionally and that at least parts of his family were aware of it and, against their better judgment, kept this secret from the Cologne District Court and the public”.
At the time of his disappearance, Haub, born to German parents in Tacoma, Washington, and educated in Switzerland, was married and had two adult children. However, recent information suggests he may have been involved with a younger woman in Russia, according to Boetticher. Rumors have circulated since around 2020 concerning Haub and his alleged mistress, Veronika Ermilova.
Speculation has also arisen that millions of euros from Tengelmann funds may have been redirected to Russia between 2010 and 2015. Haub vanished just one month after the death of his father, Erivan Haub, estimated to be worth $6.4 billion at the time according to Forbes. Boetticher indicated that the reason for Karl-Erivan Haub’s disappearance could be linked to the family’s business dealings. “Our suspicion is that dealings with Russia or with Russian business partners may have put Karl-Erivan in trouble in the Western world,” she suggested.
Christian Haub took over the Tengelmann Group as sole CEO shortly after his older brother disappeared. His lawyer, Mark Binz, vehemently denied the journalists’ allegations in a comment to Zeit Online. “Of course, there is no truth to the accusation,” Bonz scoffed. “Until a few weeks ago, the Cologne public prosecutor’s office saw it that way and therefore refused to start an investigation”.
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