Pages

Thursday 15 July 2010

Bizarre story: Swedish model, his ex-lover Saudi Arabian princess and her Armenian chauffeur


'Gold-digger': Swedish model Patrick Ribbsaeter is alleged to have attacked his (Saudi Arabian princess) ex-girlfriend's chauffeur in a drunk and drug-fuelled rage after she caught him having a three-some with two other women in her flat in London.


Trial: Sarkis Tokatlian (chauffeur), left, was attacked while trying to protect Saudi Arabian princess Sara Al-Amoundi, right, it has been claimed.
***

This is a bizarre story. It started last year, and trial is currently underway in London.

Daily Mail reports that Swedish model Patrick Ribbsaeter had met Saudi Arabian princess Sara Al-Amoudi on holiday in Thailand and the pair became lovers. "The relationship offered the promise of unimaginable wealth to Ribbsaeter, 30, who has modelled for a host of household names, including Calvin Klein, Armani, Gucci and Christian Dior.

But his hopes of a gilded future promptly disappeared when she caught him with the [two] other women in her flat in Victoria, Central London, the court heard."

The circumstances of the alleged assault are not that clear and pretty bizarre, in fact. Reportedly, last September, after Saudi princess found out about cheating, the couple went for a dinner. Then Tokatlian drove them "to a series of nightclubs [Unzipped - !], including the Ministry of Sound, before the couple returned to her flat in the early hours of Sunday." According to the British tabloid, it was only after that night of clubbing the princess "realised" that "Patrick was, after all, not the man for her".

"Mr Tokatlian returned to the flat after dropping off the car and it became apparent that Ribbsaeter and Miss Al-Amoudi had split up. The trio talked until Miss Al-Amoudi fell asleep. But Ribbsaeter is then said to have lunged at her, prompting the chauffeur to respond."

"At this point her driver Sarkis Tokatlian stepped in to stop him, giving him a bloody nose, but Ribbsaeter smashed a wine glass and stabbed the driver six times in his face before beginning to strangle him, a jury was told".

"After the alleged glass attack, the pair struggled on the floor by the dining table until Ribbsaeter climbed on top of the victim. He grabbed his throat with both hands, and began to strangle him, stopping only when Mr Tokatlian pushed his thumbs into his attacker's eyes, the court heard."

"The jury was told Ribbsaeter has a previous conviction in Sweden for strangling a different ex-girlfriend. Ribbsaeter told the jury that Mr Tokatlian was the aggressor and that he had only defended himself. He said he had been drinking and had taken a tiny quantity of ketamine and an ecstasy tablet while the two others had taken much more."

The case continues.

*Info and pictures - via Daily Mail

1 comment:

artmika said...

Updates: Swedish male model cleared of breaking neck of Saudi princess’s driver

A SWEDISH male model was today cleared of breaking the neck of a chauffeur who worked for his Saudi princess girlfriend.

Patrick Ribbsaeter, 30, had been accused of slashing Sarkis Tokatlian with a broken glass when Sara Al-Amoudi ended their relationship and his hopes of a millionaire lifestyle.

The princess had dropped Ribbsaeter after catching him with two other women in her Victoria flat.

The pony-tailed model, described in court as a "vain, egocentric gold-digger", was then said to have lunged at her and then hit out at Mr Tokatlian, who had stepped in to save her.

The driver needed treatment for a fractured hyoid bone in his neck, six cuts to his face and cuts to the back of his head, ear and left arm, including deep wounds to his elbow and wrist.

But this afternoon a jury at Southwark crown court found Ribbsaeter not guilty of inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent on Mr Tokatlian and unlawfully wounding Miss Al-Amoudi in September last year.

Giving evidence, he had told the jury he believed he was in danger and was scared Mr Tokatlian was going to kill him. He said the "hysterical" princess had leapt on him and pulled his hair while high on cocaine.

A fight broke out and he had got the chauffeur in a "choke hold" to get him to calm down.

Ribbsaeter had met Miss Al-Amoudi on holiday in Thailand in May last year. Within weeks they announced plans to marry but only four months later she was determined to end the romance when she found him drunk with a friend and the two girls. Giving evidence with a burka hiding her face, she told the court: "He was completely drunk. I said: 'How can you do this to me?' They were doing very, very naughty things, very outrageous.'"

Despite her feelings she went out that night with Ribbsaeter and they were driven by Mr Tokatlian in her Rolls-Royce to dinner, the Ministry of Sound and a gay bar. But when they returned to the Marsham Court flat the model lost control and lashed out.

Miss Al-Amoudi said: "I was shocked. I had never seen blood like that before."