31 August 1961 · Over the wall

A former FU student cuts the fence at the Nibelungenweg

At about 6.50 p.m. on 31 August 1961 a man born in 1939 who had been a student at the Free University in West Berlin cut through the wire fence at the Nibelungenweg in Altglienicke; the guards noticed only when he was already in the West.

At about 6.50 p.m. on 31 August 1961 a student born in 1939 left East Berlin at the Nibelungenweg in Altglienicke by cutting through the wire fence, according to the Stasi report of that day. He had previously been a student at the FU, West Berlin's Free University.

The guard noticed the breakthrough only when he was already on West Berlin ground.

Sources

  1. Jahrgang 1961: Lage nach dem Bau der Berliner Mauer (15) – Bericht Nr. 510/61, 31. August 1961Stasi-Unterlagen-Archiv (DDR im Blick)

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