Peter St. escapes on his birthday, losing his wallet
On his birthday Peter St. crawled from the Sophien cemetery across the border strip; a signal device failed and he got through, leaving behind a wallet containing his call-up papers.
On 19 May 1966, his birthday, Peter St. set out from the Sophien cemetery to get to the West.
A signal device that should have raised the alarm did not work, and he made it across. All the border troops could do afterwards was record the tracks he had left while crawling through the border strip.
He lost his wallet on the way. Inside it the guards found a military call-up notice (Musterungsbescheid), which the memorial suggests may have been one reason for his escape.
Sources
- Gedenkstätte Berliner Mauer – Bereich A: Die Mauer und der Todesstreifen (Orientierungsplan und Ereignismarken), marker A 326Stiftung Berliner Mauer
- A 326 – Digital Guide, Berlin Wall MemorialStiftung Berliner Mauer
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