Berlin Wall Escapes1961–1989

27 January 1986 · Over the wall · Bernauer Straße

Frank K. is caught at the signal fence

An applicant for an exit visa who worked near the border prepared tools and a change of trousers, got over the inner wall, and was arrested climbing the signal fence.

A street with a double line of cobblestones set into the road where the Wall once ran
Cobblestones marking the line of the Wall across Brunnenstraße (2018) Photo: Andrzej Otrębski. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Frank K. applied to leave the GDR in March 1984 and at the same time looked for a way to escape. From early 1986 he worked at a company on Brunnenstraße, which probably gave him a chance to study the border installations there.

On 27 January 1986 he decided to go. He got hold of tools and, as camouflage, wore two pairs of trousers so that he could change.

Sunny street corner with a grass strip and path in front, low apartment buildings behind, and on the right a white gable wall labelled 'Bernauer Straße' with a large black-and-white mural and a row of photo panels.
The corner of Bernauer Straße and Brunnenstraße in 2022, part of the Berlin Wall Memorial Photo: Francesco Adami. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

He climbed over the inner wall without being noticed, but as he tried to climb the signal fence the sentries arrested him. He was handed over to the People's Police.

Sources

Historians and memorials

Facts checked against the sources: September 2026

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Berlin Experiences, “Frank K. is caught at the signal fence”, Berlin Wall Escapes, 2026, https://berlinwallescapes.com/escapes/frank-k-brunnenstrasse-1986/ (accessed [date]).

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