Building cleaner's window-ladder escape
A 31-year-old building cleaner used a window-cleaning ladder to cross every barrier from Treptow into Neukölln while two guards fired 18 shots at him without a hit.
In the early hours of 19 April 1988 a 31-year-old building cleaner approached the border near the 'Sorgenfrei' allotment colony in Berlin-Treptow, carrying a window-cleaning ladder.
He used it to get over the rear wall and the border signal fence, setting off optical and acoustic alarms. Two border guards fired a total of 18 shots at him but missed.
With the ladder he overcame the last obstacle, the 3.6-metre main Wall, and reached Neukölln unharmed. A Stasi report concluded that 'swift and precise use of firearms' could have prevented the breakthrough; the two guards were placed under closer Stasi surveillance.
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