50 years after the crime Ex-Stasi officer (80) gets 10 years in prison
A man is shot dead on behalf of the Stasi at the GDR border crossing at Friedrichstrasse station in Berlin. The case only came to court 50 years later. Now the judges want to pronounce their verdict.
14.10.2024, 14:12
14.10.2024, 15:12
dpa
In the middle of the day, a man is shot in the back at the GDR border crossing at Friedrichstrasse station in East Berlin. It takes decades before charges can be brought and the case is brought to court in reunified Germany. Around 50 years after the crime, the Berlin Regional Court is due to deliver its verdict today (11.00 a.m.) in the trial of an ex-Stasi employee who is now 80 years old.
The Berlin public prosecutor's office has requested twelve years imprisonment for treacherous murder. Prosecutor Henrike Hillmann is convinced that the former first lieutenant shot the 38-year-old Pole Czesław Kukuczka from a distance of two to three meters from an ambush on 29 March 1974 on behalf of the Stasi.
Defendant denies accusations
The defense lawyer for the German defendant, on the other hand, demanded an acquittal. It had not been proven that her client was the shooter. The 80-year-old had remained silent about the allegations. His lawyer had stated at the beginning of the trial that her client denied them.
The Saxon is said to have belonged to an operational group of the Ministry for State Security (MfS) and was tasked with "neutralizing" the Pole. Prior to this, he had allegedly tried to force his departure to West Berlin at the Polish embassy with a fake bomb.
The MfS is said to have lured the 38-year-old into a trap with a fake departure. He received documents and was accompanied by Stasi employees to Friedrichstrasse station. However, when he had passed the last checkpoint there, the shot was fired.
West German pupils witness the crime
It was West German schoolgirls from a 10th grade class who happened to witness the crime. They had visited East Berlin and wanted to return to the western part of the then divided city. Several schoolgirls from Hesse at the time gave an impressive account of what happened in court - and of their fear and bewilderment.
"There was a man behind me with a travel bag," recalled a 65-year-old. The man had been pulled forward. After getting his passport back, he walked purposefully towards the underpass. Suddenly, however, a man in a long coat and wearing sunglasses stepped forward from behind - and the shot was fired. The man with the travel bag collapsed. "I can still see it in my mind's eye," said the witness. The doors were closed immediately afterwards. "We were terrified." Back in the West, the teacher informed the police.
At the time, there had been an unsuccessful request to the judiciary in the East, a Berlin commissioner described during the trial. The police officer was given the old files for the new investigation. But there was no progress for many years.
Decisive clue only in 2016
It was not until 2016 that the Stasi records archive provided a decisive clue to the possible identity of the shooter: An order signed by the then State Security Minister Erich Mielke named twelve MfS employees who were to be honored in connection with the killing. According to the document, the accused was awarded the "Order of Combat in Bronze" by the Stasi.
However, the public prosecutor's office initially assumed it was manslaughter and not murder and discontinued the proceedings in 2017 because the crime would have been time-barred in this case. In the meantime, however, the public prosecutor's office considers the murder criterion of malice aforethought to be fulfilled. The background to the new assessment was a European arrest warrant against the accused following persistent investigations on the Polish side.
Defense: It was not clear that the accused was the shooter
In her plea, the ex-Stasi employee's defense lawyer warned that research by historians was not sufficient for a legal assessment. "Historians do not speak justice on behalf of the people," emphasized Andrea Liebscher. "I think that everything that could be found out after 50 years has been found out."
According to her, it was not sufficiently certain that her client was the shooter. She was also convinced that it was manslaughter and not murder. The victim could not have been unsuspecting in view of his previously staged bomb threat.
Award of "combat medals" led to the trail
At the beginning of the trial, presiding judge Bernd Miczajka made it clear where the difficulty lay some 50 years after the crime: "Much will be based on the assessment of documents." The court would have to get an idea of how reliable these were. The main issue was the proposal to award the "Order of Combat" after the crime.
Several times over the past six months, the chamber requested sketches or documents from the Stasi Records Archive. An expert witness for historical studies was heard as a witness. But many questions remained. Also because potential witnesses could no longer be questioned. They are now dead.
Gratitude from relatives
From the point of view of the defense, however, the court made every effort to clear up the case with the means at its disposal. The victim's relatives, who are co-plaintiffs in the proceedings, were also satisfied.
The lawyers for the three children - a daughter and two sons - and a sister of the Polish man who was killed emphasized that their clients were never interested in a specific punishment or revenge. "They simply wanted a verdict," said lawyer Rajmund Niwinski. "The joint plaintiffs are grateful to the court, to the German state, that this trial took place."
The verdict is expected in the trial against an ex-Stasi officer. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
The trial against an ex-Stasi officer is drawing to a close. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
The verdict is expected in the trial against an ex-Stasi officer. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
The trial against an ex-Stasi officer is drawing to a close. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
