An 80-year-old former officer with communist East Germany’s secret police, the Stasi, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for the murder of a Polish man at a border crossing in divided Berlin 50 years ago. The Berlin state court ruled that the former first lieutenant shot the 38-year-old Polish citizen in an ambush on March 29, 1974, on behalf of the East German secret police.
The presiding judge stated that the act was not carried out for personal reasons but was planned and executed by the Stasi. The defendant, whose name was not disclosed, fired the fatal shot at the end of a chain of command.
The court's decision fell short of the prosecutor's request for a 12-year sentence, while the defense lawyer had sought an acquittal, arguing that it had not been proven that the defendant fired the shot.
The incident dates back to March 29, 1974, when the victim allegedly attempted to leave for West Berlin by threatening Polish Embassy officials with a fake bomb. The Stasi then facilitated his departure, but the defendant was tasked with stopping him. After the victim passed the final checkpoint, he was shot in the back by the suspect from a hidden location.
The case remained unsolved for decades until a crucial tip-off in 2016 from the Stasi archives revealed the identity of the shooter. Prosecutors initially considered the offense as manslaughter, which does not have a statute of limitations in Germany.
East Germany's construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961 restricted its citizens from traveling to the West, leading to numerous escape attempts with tragic consequences. The heavily fortified border was finally opened on November 9, 1989, marking a significant moment in the downfall of communism in Europe. Germany was reunified less than a year later.
