Hildegard Trabant --- 
Report of the GDR border troops
about the escape attempt and the shooting
Hildegard Trabant - the only known photo of her


(November 20, 2015 - this page is an extension of Hildegard Trabant - A Forgotten Berlin Wall Victim, found at http://hildegardtrabant.blogspot.com

The English version of the story of Hildegard Trabant at Chronik-der-Mauer unfortunately lacks the GDR Border Troops’ Report about the escape attempt and shooting which is contained in the German version of the story of Hildegard trabant at Chronic-der-Mauer. This (GDR Border Troop) report, found here, is a satellite page of the German version of the story, not available otherwise in English. A few of the blanks have been filled in from “Aus Ander Sicht” and the registry of the Evangelischer Friedhof Nordend, where Hildegard Trabant is buried. 


Report Page 1 (text follows)


August 18, 1964

Report – on the attempted border breach with use of firearms.


On 08.18.1964, at 6:53 PM, a border breach was attempted, which was prevented by use of firearms – a warning shot, then a target shot. The border violator is the


Trabant, Hildegard, née Pohl   
born in Berlin 12.06,1927 
resides in Berlin NO 18, Tilsiter Straße 64 
married, no children
member of the SED 
occupation: secretary 
job location not known


Facts: 

At 6:53 PM, the following guards at the “Wooden Bridge”

Guard Leader Gfr. Wolf, Günter
Guard Soldier Renner, Kurt

observed a person in the thicket of bushes, 60 meters from the state border, in the dead tunnel of former S-Bahn line Schönhauser Allee-Gesundbrunnen (full ring). The person was hiding behind an elder bush. The guard acknowledged his guard leader, who immediately filed a report to the command post. At the moment the notification was received by the border sector, the command patrol,

Sergeant Richter, Winfried Georg
Soldier Leichsenring
 
responded. The sector leader ordered that the person be apprehended, and he himself went with his companion to seal off the escape route, from the Helmut-Just-Brücke to the S-Bahn tunnel. The command patrol needed about 8 minutes to provide lockdown of the area (680 meters in difficult terrain).
Report Page 2 (text follows)
At the same time, Soldier Renner went there, because he no longer saw the person from his border sector, in the tunnel. Upon arriving below, he he saw the person covered, lying in the bushes. He called to the person, who afterwards jumped and ran away. Soldier Renner fired a warning shot, and when he saw that there was no other way to apprehend the border violator, a direct shot was fired which hit the person. At the time of the second shot, the command patrol was still at the Helmut-Just-Brücke.

About 5 minutes later, the command patrol arrived; the injured person was secured, transported to the Helmut-Just-Brücke. At the Helmut-Just-Brücke the injured woman was loaded into a Sankra. Until the 7:14 PM arrival of the Sankra, the injured woman laid on a stretcher, in the truck of the available rescue team.

The first medical aid was provided by the regimental surgeon, (Upper Lieutenant) Dr. Heinz Welters. Despite prior information to the People’s Police Hospital, no preparations were made for the immediate reception and treatment of the injured. The injured died at 7:55 PM. Type of injury: stomach wound.

Secured personal effects:

- 1 briefcase
-  identity document (Ausweis GDR XV 0326878)
- wallet containing 144.28 East German Marks
- Sparkasse savings book, account 979903
- SED party card with member number 1466641 
- 5 handkerchiefs
- 1 pair shoes 
- 1 pair sunglasses
- 1 keychain with bag 
- 1 blue underskirt/petticoat
- 1 Notebook 
- 1 bottle perfume
- 1 dress/jacket dress 
- 1 pair stockings
- 2 packages Tampons (NEO brand) 
- 1 pair glasses/spectacles
- 1 pair nail clippers 
- 12 cigarettes (Jubilar brand)
- 1 nail file 
- 1 pen
- 1 skeleton/master key 
- 1 comb
- postcard from Günter Pohl, Marl-Drewer, Westfalenstraße 9, Kreis Recklinghausen, sent September 12, 1963



It was appreciated that a border breach was prevented by exemplary conduct of the guard and his leader, and escape of the border violator, through rapid tactically correct action, was not possible.



On the enemy side of the border, no actions were noted. The actions could be seen only partially due to the local situation of the civilian population. There were no gatherings of the populace.

Report Page 3 (text follows)

Actions taken:

- Recovery of the injured person and securing the reverse region;
- Searching of the crime scene;
- Reconstruction of approach and escape route;
- Extracting the two guards, and inserting two new guards;
- Formation of a study group consisting of regiment commander, chief of staff, head of the political department. and an officer of the brigade staff; 
- Concentrating the deployment of guards on Kopenhagner Straße and Finnländische Straße
- Evaluation of the preceding actions with border service comrades 
- Consultation with the 1st district secretary of the SED, Prenzlauer Berg District Administration, on August 19, 1964, for the purpose of working in the population. 

Request: 

- I request the award of Guard Leader, Soldier Wolf with the Badge of Border Troops and the Guard, Soldier Renner, with the Medal for Exemplary Border Service.

Deputy Commander and
Leader of the Political Department, Border Regiment 31 

Wilhelm Lehmann – Captain


Source: BArch, VA-07/6012, Bl 93-95.


Sketch - Chronik der Mauer
Sketch - Aus Ander Sicht
 
Sketch of the attempted border breach on August 18, 1964

Explanations 

Standpunkt der Soldat Renner bei Angabe der Schüsse 
Soldier Renner’s position while shooting 

Weg der Kontrollstreife bis zur Abgabe des Zielschusses 
Direction of the command patrol until the target shot was fired 

Einschluß der Kontrollstreife zur Verfolgung der flüchtenden Person 
Inclusion of the command patrol trailing the fleeing person 

Standort des Grenverletzers bei Festellung durch den Posten 
Location of the border violator when discovered by the guards 

Lage der Grenzverletzers nach Abgabe des Zielschusses 
Location of the border violator after shooting of the target shot 

M = 1:4000 
Scale = 1:4000 

H3A 
Vehicle (truck) of the command patrol, arrived at the Helmut-Just-Brücke at 7:00 PM, with Frau Trabant in the back, on a stretcher 
Example of an H3A
Sankra 
Military Ambulance, arrived at the Helmut-Just-Brücke at 7:14PM, immediately transported Frau Trabant to the People’s Police Hospital, where she died at 7:55PM


Example of a Sankra