German supermarket billionaire who disappeared hiking on the Matterhorn and was declared dead is ‘living with his mistress in Moscow’

A German billionaire who disappeared under mysterious circumstances under Switzerland’s iconic Matterhorn summit six years ago is suspected of living with a mistress in Russia, an investigation has found.

German-American retail magnate Karl-Erivan Haub, then 58, was training for a ski mountaineering race when he disappeared in Zermatt, Switzerland, in April 2018.

The billionaire businessman was seen going up the mountain alone in an elevator one morning — something his trainer said was strange for a man who was usually very safety-conscious and well-prepared — and never returned to his hotel.

Authorities launched a six-day search during which five helicopters and teams of alpine rescuers searched the area, but his body was never found.

Haub – the former director and co-owner of German supermarket and retail giant Tengelmann Group – was declared dead by a court in Cologne three years later, leaving behind a wife, two children and a company with some 75,000 employees.

His younger brother Christian swore in a courtroom in 2021 that there was no indication the alpinist, whose net worth was estimated at £5.2 billion, was still alive.

But now a major investigation led by German broadcaster RTL claims to have identified Haub in Moscow – and believes the tycoon is there with a much younger mistress.

Christian has now been subjected to an investigation by the Cologne public prosecutor’s office on suspicion of making false statements under oath. RTL reported.

Christian took control of the Tengelmann Group after his brother’s disappearance and claimed to have ordered a security service to investigate ‘rumors’ that he was still alive.

His lawyer, Mark Binz, told German newspaper Die Zeit: “Of course there is nothing to the accusation.”

Retail magnate Haub is said to have called the phone of a woman named Veronika Ermilova thirteen times in the three days before he disappeared in 2018, according to research by RTL and media outlet strict.

The calls were substantial – one lasted more than an hour – and led to suspicions that he was planning to fake his death with help from Moscow and Ermilova.

The investigation found that Ermilova ran a “low-profile” events agency in St. Petersburg that organized skiing, hiking and climbing excursions for outdoor enthusiasts – but she is also suspected of being involved with Russia’s FSB security service.

An investigation by Tengelmann later revealed that Haub’s life was closely intertwined with the enigmatic Ermilova, who is believed to have been some twenty years younger than Haub and was described as “a slim, athletic woman with shoulder-length brown hair, dark eyes and an open smile. ‘.

Investigators suggested she “may work for Russia’s domestic secret service FSB,” although they stressed this “cannot be proven.”

“What can be proven, however, is that she is always in the same place as Karl-Erivan Haub at the same time,” the report said.

‘In July 2008 they were both in Moscow and Sochi within a few days… In May 2009 they both traveled from Moscow to St Petersburg on the same night train, in separate compartments. The trips were booked at the same time and by the same person.

Also strange: [Ermilova] had come to Moscow the day before to take the train back home.

‘Further overlaps of short journeys through Haub and [Ermilova] can be found for stays in Omsk (2010), Sochi (2011), Baku (2014) and Moscow (2015, 2017).’

The report states: ‘It is not clear why these alleged meetings took place. It doesn’t sound like a love holiday.’

RTL journalist Liv von Boetticher speculated that Haub’s disappearance in Switzerland and alleged appearances in Russia may have been the result of shady business dealings.

“It is known that Karl-Erivan Haub has done business with questionable people in the Russian economy,” she claimed.

“Our assumption is that doing business with Russia or with Russian business partners could have gotten Karl-Erivan into trouble in the West.”

In addition to calling Ermilova, Haub also allegedly called Russian banker Andrei Suzdaltsev in both Russia and Geneva shortly before his death, according to the investigation by RTL and Stern.

Another of Haub’s Russian business partners was the infamous self-proclaimed fraudster Sergey Grishin, known as the ‘Scarface Oligarch’.

Grishin made headlines in the UK and US after selling his $14.7 million home in Montecito, California, to none other than Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in 2020.

Another co-owner of RosEvroBank, the Russian oligarch, had purchased the property with seven hectares of land, a swimming pool, a tennis court, a guesthouse and a beautiful main house in 2009.

His nickname Scarface is derived from his ownership of another Californian mansion where the 1983 Al Pacino film of the same name was filmed.

Grishin is said to have died last year from a long illness, although no evidence of his burial has ever emerged.

RTL journalist Boetticher also speculated in an interview with Die Welt that Haub may actually have worked for the Russians.

‘He could have acted as a kind of influence agent for Russia in Germany… It’s not about an agent with a floppy hat and a trench coat or a James Bond, but about influence on politics and the economy.

“(His disappearance came) at a time when Tengelmann was doing quite badly… expanding into Russia, for example, with the DIY chain Obi.”

The journalist said: ‘I’m sure it wasn’t a skiing accident, it was a staged escape.’

The exact method Haub used to carry out his alleged escape is unknown.

Some believe he skied the Alps and descended into Italy, but there is no trace of his whereabouts after he embarked on a solo ski tour in April 2018.