East German Crime Cases –
Rebellion Against the State

Synopsis

Crime had no place in the GDR's socialist vision of humanity. Concealment and secrecy became the rule when criminal acts did occur. Yet even in the SED state, people were murdered, robbed and deceived. This documentary examines four spectacular criminal cases from the 1960s, 70s and 80s – all suppressed and kept secret by the regime.

In 1981, four prisoners attempt a violent escape from the GDR to force their emigration. The breakout succeeds – through brutal force. But can they actually secure their freedom? In 1979, a pipe bomb explodes in Weimar. Shortly afterwards, police find another device at the train station. The Stasi and police are thrown into turmoil: is there a terrorist cell in the GDR – or was it a dangerous act of youthful recklessness?

In Plauen, a criminal investigator repeatedly attacks and strangles young women. Because the perpetrator is himself part of the investigation team, the case is carefully buried. And on the transit motorway between East Berlin and Leipzig, two men are found shot dead – clearly from the West. Even the MfS's special investigators are baffled. It takes six years to uncover that the killer comes from within the GDR's own intelligence community – a secret service even more shadowy than the Stasi.

Reconstructed through dramatised scenes, archive footage and original documents, the film draws on accounts from experts, eyewitnesses and victims to cast new light on investigations that the regime did everything to suppress.

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