Former Schumacher family security guard arrested in blackmail case

German police have arrested a former security worker for the family of Formula One legend Michael Schumacher in relation to a case of attempted blackmail, prosecutors announced on Friday.

The 52-year-old suspected mastermind was arrested on Thursday in the town of Wülfrath near Wuppertal, in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, and a large volume of additional evidence was secured, said chief public prosecutor Wolf-Tilman Baumert.

In late June, investigators had arrested the two suspected blackmailers, a 53-year-old and his 30-year-old son. According to the public prosecutor's office, they possessed private photos of the family.

The investigation into how the two men had obtained the photos - documenting the family's private life and immediate surroundings - led to the 52-year-old former security guard.

Schumacher was severely injured in a ski accident at the end of 2013. He has not appeared in public since then.