Berlin Wall Escapes1961–1989

15 January 1966 · Over the wall

Gerd L. turns back under warning shots and hides at Brunnenstraße 141

A local resident reached the border strip, then under construction; warning shots turned him back and he was arrested on the top floor of Brunnenstraße 141.

On 15 January 1966 Gerd L., who lived close to the Wall on Strelitzer Straße, tried to escape near Brunnenstraße. The guards only spotted him when he was at or already in the border strip, which was then being rebuilt.

Squad leader E. left the tower to cut him off and ordered him to stop from almost a hundred metres away. When Gerd L. kept moving towards Brunnenstraße, E. fired several warning shots.

Gerd L. turned back and hid in the house at Brunnenstraße 141. People's Police officers pointed out his hiding place to the pursuing soldiers, and he was arrested on the top floor and handed over to the police.

Sources

  1. Gedenkstätte Berliner Mauer – Bereich C: Der Bau der Mauer (Orientierungsplan und Ereignismarken), marker C 385Stiftung Berliner Mauer
  2. C 385 – Digital Guide, Berlin Wall MemorialStiftung Berliner Mauer

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