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54 hours that gripped West Germany in fear

April 10, 2021 / 01:26:52

This episode covers the Gladbeck hostage crisis of 1988, detailing the armed robbery at Deutsche Bank in Gladbeck, Germany, and the subsequent hostage situation involving bank employees Andrea Blecker and others.

On August 16, 1988, Andrea Blecker and a colleague were taken hostage by robbers Hans Jurgen Rosner and Dieter Dagovsky during a bank heist. The robbers, armed and desperate, demanded money and a getaway car, leading to a tense standoff with police.

The situation escalated as the robbers took their hostages on a chaotic journey across Germany, leading to a bus hijacking that involved multiple hostages, including children. Media coverage intensified, with journalists documenting the unfolding drama.

After a lengthy standoff, police attempted to intervene, resulting in a tragic shootout that left hostages dead, including 15-year-old Silke Bischoff. The episode discusses the aftermath, including public outrage over police and media actions during the crisis.

The episode highlights the failures of law enforcement and the media's role in the crisis, ultimately leading to a parliamentary inquiry and the eventual convictions of the robbers.

TLDR

The Gladbeck hostage crisis reveals police and media failures during a bank robbery and its tragic aftermath.

Episode

1:26:52
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00:01:47
notes for this episode on your app or on our website at 7 45 on the morning of tuesday august
00:01:56
16 1988 23 year old andrea blacker was preparing to start her day in the west german town of gladbach she worked as a
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customer service representative at a branch of the deutsche bank which was housed in a rectangular
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two-story brian brick building near the tion center glatbeck sat in the western state of north rhine
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westphalia and had become a popular coal mining center in the previous century by the mid-1960s that industry was on
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the decline and that the town had been battling high unemployment levels ever since as she approached the bank
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andrea greeted a 34 year old colleague who worked as a teller and was also making his way towards the
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building just as the two of them reached the bank's glass doors two masked men appeared out of nowhere
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both were carrying revolvers the men forced both bank employees into the building at gunpoint
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and threatened to shoot them inside the bank was quiet and empty it hadn't opened yet and there was no
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one else around the gunman made it clear that this was an armed robbery and it demanded a large sum of money
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having been trained to handle this exact situation the two clerks provided them with 120
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000 german marks the holdup was going perfectly for the robbers they had their money
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and the early hour made it likely that they'd escaped quickly and without detection but outside
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a witness had spotted the crime in progress and called the police by am officers had been dispatched to
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the scene and were lying in wait as the two offenders made their way to the bank's
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front doors with their stolen loot they spotted the police car parked nearby hastily the two men retreated back
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inside they needed a new plan to secure their exit without getting arrested they decided to take the two bank
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employees [Music] hostage [Music] robbing a bank had been an impromptu plan for the two men
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who were now hunkered down inside the deutsche bank the leader of the pair was a notorious
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local criminal named hans jurgen rosner he'd had his first brush with the law at
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the age of 14 and had a reputation for violent behavior and a domineering personality
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after being convicted of robbery and assault he'd spent 11 years in prison during his incarceration
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he stabbed a guard in the neck and had a couple more years added to his sentence
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eventually he was released on parole but had disappeared after going on the run local law enforcement had been
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keeping an eye out for him ever since to no avail rosner was now 31 years old with a
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scruffy beard and messy brown hair that was longer in the back but receding at the front
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a yellow tank top exposed his heavily tattooed arms and he wore baggy blue jeans he'd spent
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the previous night drinking with his accomplice 32 year old adita dagovsky the two men had met at school
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and were lifelong friends degovsky had a quieter more nervous personality but a similarly substantial rap shape
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like rosner he had receding brown hair a beard and numerous tattoos though his were concealed by a long-sleeved
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checked shirt at six that morning at the end of their all-night drinking session
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the two friends had suddenly decided to try their luck at robbing a bank they'd made their way
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into town on a moped and waited until they spotted the two deutsche bank employees
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then they struck now caught off guard by the arrival of police rosner and dagovsky frantically
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concocted a back-up plan they would let officers know they were holding people captive
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and to negotiate a deal in exchange for their freedom the men made contact with the police via
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the bank's telephone and informed them that they had guns and two hostages their victims would only be freed if
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police supplied a bmw getaway car and an additional 300 000 to german marks in small denominations prove
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that they had weapons and should be considered dangerous they fired their revolver through the
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bank's windows shattering the glass to prevent officers storming the building and thwarting their plan
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rosner and dagovsky forced their two hostages into the bank's bulletproof cash office
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then followed them in the police responded by bringing in a psychologist to call the bank
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and try to talk the men into revealing their identities rosner and dagovsky called on to the
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ploy and refused to speak to the police any further instead they demanded to speak to the
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bank's director and ordered that he organised the car and ran some money himself
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despite the robbers refusal to name themselves police were able to id hans jurgen
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rosner and deduced correctly that his accomplice was his longtime friend dieter degovsky mindful
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that both men were known for being volatile and dangerous they decided their best course of action
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was to go along with their demands it took them a while to organize the cash before handing it over police treated
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the banknotes with a solution that would leave traces on whoever handled it that way they'd have evidence pointing
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to the culprits when they managed to arrest them the process was a lengthy one adding to
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the high stress of the urgent situation while police scrambled to get the funds ready the men continued to call the
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bank's director demanding to know why it hadn't arrived yet tensions further increased when police
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realised they couldn't source at bmw as the robbers getaway car the only vehicles available
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were audis rosner and digovsky grew increasingly anxious as they waited and the police became nervous that they
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might lash out against their hostages time continued to pass as law enforcement struggled to meet the
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robbers demands by 2 pm the hostages had been holed up inside the bank with their captors
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for more than six hours by now the press had caught wind of the story word had filtered out that there was an
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ongoing standoff between two armed robbers and the police at the gladbach deutsche bank the journalists
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didn't know the identity of the criminals and scrambled desperately for a scoop it was quickly discovered that the
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police hadn't blocked the bank's phone number so anyone could dial in a journalist
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phoned and his call was met by a male voice when the journalist asked who he was
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speaking to the man on the other end of the line replied the bank robber when asked if they
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wanted anything other than the money in the car the robber explained that they also
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wanted two sets of handcuffs realizing that this likely meant the two men had no intention of freeing the bank
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clerks the journalist asked what do you need handcuffs for that means you are not planning to let
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the hostages go as soon as the demands are fulfilled the robber replied not initially
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we want to take them with us when asked where they planned to go the robber responded sarcastically
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i'm not going to tell you the journalist warned that they'd be followed wherever they went
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the robber replied conversation is over then abruptly hung up a radio station was also able to get
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through to the bank's phone and conducted an impromptu on-air interview with the robbers
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one of them stated from here on i only want to speak through the media finally the money was ready it had been
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wrapped up in three plastic bundles a police officer prepared to deliver it he stripped off his clothes and wore
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nothing but swimming shorts to prove he was unarmed carrying only the bundle of cash he
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moved towards the bank he placed the ransom money by the front entrance the robbers forced the mail hostage to
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collect the parcel wearing a sling around his neck the hostage lay sprawled on the floor of the
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bank's entrance and yanked the glass door open with one hand one by one he picked up the parcels of
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money and threw them to his captors then he closed the door and crawled back inside multiple police officers
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continued to monitor the situation as journalists and television news crews looked on
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the hours continued to pass and there was still no sign of the getaway car [Music]
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then at 8pm a white four-door audi 100 sedan pulled up outside the bank when it wasn't parked in the exact
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way that the robbers had requested rosner demanded that it be moved closer to the building
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then he digovsky and the two bank employees emerged from the bank and filed into the
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car the intensity of the situation had captured the nation cameraman filmed every moment as the
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police officers looked on by now officers from one of the state's tactical police units
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known as the sc car had arrived at the scene with rosner behind the wheel the car
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pulled away at 9 45 pm and drove off into the dark night the police officers had promised they
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wouldn't follow but they immediately gave chase unbeknown to the bank robbers a gps
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tracking unit had been installed on the audi so sa car officers were able to monitor their movements
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plan was to follow inconspicuously hoping that the perpetrators would release their two hostages along the way
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once they were freed the police officers could run down the felons more safely they weren't the only ones in hot
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pursuit members of the press received tip-offs from their contacts in the police force
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and also began chasing after the getaway car in earnest they were always a step or so behind
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often arriving at a location where the car had last been seen just after it departed
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wolfgang schoening the deutsche bank's director was worried ever since the robbers had
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decided they no longer wanted to negotiate with police he had been acting as their mediator and
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had spoken to rosner on the phone numerous times after receiving the ransom money
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rosner had assured wolfgang they would be releasing his two employees as soon as it was safe to do so but now
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wolfgang feared that as long as the robbers were being followed they would refuse to let
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the hostages go wolfgang begged the police to give up their chase but they refused assuring him they were
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following from a safe distance and there was no way that their targets had any idea
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then at one stage the bank robbers pulled into a service station the police were close behind to their
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surprise rosner walked straight up to an officer and stole his gun now he and his accomplice had a
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total of three firearms after leaving the bank rosner and dagovsky weren't sure where to turn
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they'd made a beeline for the autobahn a highway system that spanned across the entire country
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but they could see that they were being followed by police and the media for a while they drove around aimlessly
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with no destination in mind suddenly rosner was struck with an idea he would stop by the home of his
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girlfriend 34 year old marianne lerblick and pick her up so she could accompany them
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after getting in the car lerblick suggested that they go to bremen a city 238 kilometers northeast of
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glatbeck where some of her relatives lived it was a significant journey that could
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take up to three hours to complete rosner and d'agowski agreed and got back on the autobahn as they drove
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they turned on the car radio stations were providing news updates about their escape
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and police efforts to track them after a while the group stopped at another service station so that everyone
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could get some food as rosner dargovski and ellerblick sat at one table eating the two hostages sat side by side at
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another undercover officers watched from the very next table one at a time rosner and dygovsky got up
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and went to the bathroom unwilling to provoke the armed men the police remained seated and made no attempt to follow
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them eventually the group got up piled back into the wide audi and drove off once again
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[Music] the police continued to follow the bank robbers as they made their way towards
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bremen but it was members of the media who managed to stay right on their tail after making several stops along the way
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the robbers and their hostages arrived at their destination on the morning of wednesday august 17.
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still armed rosner and his girlfriend marion lerblick went shopping while dagovsky stayed with
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the hostages rosner purchased a suit and unsuccessfully tried to hire a car in an attempt to switch to a vehicle
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that law enforcement wouldn't recognize back at the car degoski had consumed a mix of alcohol and
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pills and the combination caused him to doze off 23 year old hostage andrea blecker
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noticed that he'd left his gun on a partition between the seats she and her colleague
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contemplated snatching the weapon while dagovsky slept but were terrified of getting caught
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they decided not to risk it rosner returned to the car after an hour and escorted andrea to a nearby green
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grocer he instructed her to call the police from the store's phone and relay a message on his behalf
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the press made no secret of the fact that they were following their every move a crowd of journalists photographers and
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camera crews swarmed around the green grocer as andrea picked up the phone and did as she was told
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speaking to a police officer she complained about law enforcement following them
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saying that their unrelenting pursuit of the group was the reason she and her colleague were still being held
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hostage andrea added that they both trusted their abductors more than law enforcement and warned
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that if either of them were killed the police would be to blame rosner then snatched the phone from
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andrea and demanded to speak with the task force's top brass the relevant officers weren't present at
00:19:45
the time and rosner's request was not met just as rosner was attempting to reach
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out to them again he spotted a nearby car that he suspected held undercover officers he became enraged
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and impulsively grabbed one of the green grocers customers taking them prisoner as well
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he and dagovsky then marched their hostages across the road to a nearby bus stop
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news crews filmed them and their movements were broadcast alive to viewers all over the country police remained
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reluctant to intervene worried that if they attempted to make an arrest innocent people could end up
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being killed now had it been almost 36 hours since rosner and degovsky had set out to rob a
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bank the two men were sustaining themselves with amphetamines and pills they also drank beer constantly
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they were growing increasingly desperate to escape and felt a faster getaway car was their only
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chance to elude those pursuing them the two men decided they needed a bigger bargaining chip in
00:21:02
order to negotiate with the authorities idling at the bus stop across the road from the greengrocers
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was a red public transit bus sitting inside was the driver and 25 passengers ranging from children to the
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elderly at approximately 7 pm rosner and degovsky climbed aboard with the two bank hostages
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and pointed their firearms at the passengers announcing that they were hijacking the bus
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the people on board were confused as to what exactly was going on passenger stephanie hinspeter thought
00:21:42
that they must have been filming a crime show or a program where pranks were played on unsuspecting members of the
00:21:48
public rosner and dygovsky had ordered the bank hostages to sit in a pair of seats
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behind them sat eighteen-year-old enis voitla and her friend silke bischoff enis was confused like stephanie
00:22:06
she wondered if the entire thing was part of a low-budget movie but when she took a closer look at the
00:22:12
hostages sitting in front of her she saw how distraught they looked after that she decided to stay quiet and
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to lie low for her own protection officers from bremen's se car unit were still reluctant to directly intervene
00:22:32
they'd been ordered to avoid any actions that could place the hostages in danger
00:22:38
according to one responding officer that pretty much meant that we weren't able to do anything at all
00:22:46
in a bizarre twist of fate the unit had wanted to practice responding to a hostage situation on a bus
00:22:52
several weeks earlier unfortunately the drill hadn't gone ahead due to being too expensive to coordinate
00:23:02
while the police stood back and kept a close eye on things the many journalists who were present
00:23:08
descended on the bus stop for them the chance to cover a crime in real time with no interference from police was an
00:23:16
incredible once in a lifetime opportunity tagovsky stayed on the bus but rosner disembarked
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seeming to relish the media attention journalists thrust microphones and cameras at his face
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the startling update was broadcast to viewers at home camera crews and photographers boarded
00:23:41
the bus to get close-up angles of the situation on board passengers watched on as the
00:23:47
media documented their ordeal but made no attempt to assist them dagovsky posed for the cameras with a
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smirk on his face as he casually held his pistol in one hand rosener's girlfriend marion lerblick was
00:24:03
carrying the third firearm in their frenzy to be the first to break the story some journalists mistakenly claimed that
00:24:13
a police officer was among the now 28 hostages bremen's mayor claus videmeister had
00:24:21
arrived at the increasingly chaotic scene and appeared on camera he criticized the
00:24:28
media's coverage of the dangerous situation stating i think you've crossed the line
00:24:36
as soon as his interview concluded reporters returned to their attention to the bank robbers
00:24:43
rosner gave an impromptu press conference just outside the bus he held a pistol in his right hand as he
00:24:51
spoke to reporters when asked why he had decided to rob the bank in the first place
00:24:57
he simply replied i don't have any morals there is no other work for me i want to
00:25:03
live my life his face was blank as he said my body is very dangerous this will be
00:25:12
the end i already sat 13 years in prison i don't give a [ __ ] for my whole life
00:25:20
then he mimed suicide by placing the nozzle of the gun in his mouth about 15 minutes after the bus was
00:25:34
hijacked some of the passengers had had enough they weren't sure what was happening but
00:25:40
the presence of the media gave the situation a surreal feel there was little sense of fear even
00:25:47
though they'd been threatened with guns four elderly passengers and one child disembarked the vehicle with one woman
00:25:56
pausing to ask some journalists if she was allowed to do so they gave her permission and she
00:26:02
continued on her way neither rosner nor digoski tried to stop any of them from leaving one of the elderly passengers
00:26:13
later told the press i simply stood up no one stopped me live footage of the ongoing crisis was
00:26:22
streamed throughout evening news programs the entire country was captivated a press photographer named peter meyer
00:26:31
took on the role of messenger acting as a go-between between the bank robbers and the police
00:26:38
rosner was now asking for a faster car free from tracking devices another three hundred thousand to four
00:26:45
hundred thousand marks an extra set of handcuffs and a police officer whose hands were bound
00:26:53
in exchange for these things he and dagovsky would release all of the hostages on the bus
00:27:00
if their demands were not met rosner said they would blow up the bus the photographer shared these demands
00:27:08
with the press before passing them on to police officers watched from a safe distance
00:27:17
they were reluctant to provide one of their own as a hostage given the perpetrators obvious dislike
00:27:23
of law enforcement by this time snipers had been dispatched to the scene and were hiding nearby
00:27:30
with a perfect view of the bus stop they were just waiting for the right moment to strike
00:27:37
and the permission to do so it was never granted although the bank robbers were often in
00:27:47
their sights while the hostages remained safely on the bus a local law prevented
00:27:53
so-called rescue shooting rosner continued chatting with the media who occasionally lit
00:28:01
cigarettes for him he appeared relaxed and seemed to enjoy his sudden celebrity status
00:28:08
at one stage he left his pistol lying across his lap as he spoke to reporters but eventually
00:28:15
he got tired of relaying his demands via a messenger and demanded that the police speak to
00:28:20
him directly peter meyer begged some officers to do so but they refused instead they gave him a
00:28:30
radio that rosner could use to speak to them rosner tried to use the radio but it
00:28:38
didn't work he became infuriated and his rage only increased when he spotted what he thought was a
00:28:46
police officer in the window of a nearby building rosner stormed onto the bus and grabbed
00:28:53
one of the hostages eighteen-year-old silke bischoff silke was a court stenographer and a
00:29:00
trainee at a law firm situated in bremen she'd finished work an hour early that day
00:29:07
but had waited for her friend and colleague enos voitla to finish so they could catch the bus home together
00:29:16
rosner pulled silke off the bus then dragged her in front of the police and media
00:29:21
as he pressed his gun to her head and shouted you [ __ ] [ __ ] off or it is going
00:29:28
to fire up in here rosner then shot in the direction of the window and added this is the last warning the next one is
00:29:37
going to fly out of the bus the commotion drew more onlookers to the scene by now daylight was fading and it was
00:29:49
growing dark rosner continued trying to use the police radio but it had very poor reception the
00:29:57
demands he barked into it were going ignored frustrated by the lack of response from police
00:30:05
rosner grabbed another hostage this time he chose an eight-year-old girl named tatiana de
00:30:12
georgie who had been riding the bus with her fifteen-year-old brother emmanuella their family was italian and
00:30:20
had migrated to western germany in the hopes of a better more prosperous life rosner used tatiana as a protective
00:30:29
shield holding the gun to her head as he screamed what is going on now you [ __ ]
00:30:36
you cowardly pigs the only other sound aside from his voice was the click of cameras as
00:30:45
photographers snapped shots of the disturbing scene news crews captured tatiana standing
00:30:53
there dressed in a dark coloured skirt a striped long sleeve top and a white headband in her long dark
00:31:00
hair she looked frightened as she clutched a red bag to her chest rosner handed the police radio to peter
00:31:10
meyer and gave him a new message to pass on he wanted a new radio and would drive
00:31:16
the bus around to the block until it was ready peter ran back to the police to update them
00:31:24
he explained that he'd tried to convince rosner to leave the hostages and use his car instead but he'd
00:31:31
declined at 10 pm rosner and dygovsky had finally had enough of waiting they took command of the bus and it
00:31:42
pulled away from the small shopping strip an investigator later reflected it was pretty much the turning point
00:31:51
with no peaceful ending to hope for peter meyer decided to get in his car and follow them
00:32:00
as he had a car phone he dialed a number some officers had given him that were supposed to connect him with the case's
00:32:07
operation controllers the call failed to go through peter wasn't sure whether the police had
00:32:15
made a mistake when giving him the number or if they deliberately provided the wrong one
00:32:23
the bus steered back on the autobahn and began heading north east tadiana de georgie sat on a lap of
00:32:30
her older brother emmanuella he did his best to keep her calm by whispering assurances
00:32:37
telling her don't be scared i'll protect you after travelling almost 40 kilometers
00:32:47
the bank robbers pulled over at a highway service station marion lerblick needed to use the
00:32:53
bathroom and rosner and degovsky decided it would be a good idea to also buy some food and
00:32:59
alcohol the journalists pursuing the vehicle quickly realised what was going on and stopped at the rest stop as well
00:33:09
while lerblick made her way to the bathroom dygovsky disembarked the bus for the first time
00:33:15
since he and his accomplice had commandeered it to protect himself he took hostage silke
00:33:21
bischoff with him holding a gun to her throat if silke feared for her life she refused
00:33:29
to show it she remained stoic as reporters gathered around her and digovsky and pointed microphones at her armed
00:33:37
captor while peppering him with questions when one journalist asked if he was really willing to kill people
00:33:46
degovsky simply replied yes silke was interviewed as well when a reporter asked how she felt she
00:33:56
responded actually pretty good considering the circumstances i don't really get it
00:34:06
she couldn't imagine that dagovsky would really shoot her despite his constant threats
00:34:12
they seemed empty and hollow he'd had his chance to harm others but had opted to avoid a bloodshed and
00:34:20
in some cases let hostages go a journalist even interviewed press photographer peter meyer
00:34:28
who had inadvertently become a part of the story since acting as the robbers messenger
00:34:35
peter was concerned that police were not handling the situation well first they'd refused to send an officer
00:34:42
in to communicate with the two culprits then they'd provided radios that didn't work well
00:34:48
and the phone number that failed to connect i really don't know what the police are
00:34:55
thinking peter worried aloud [Music] peter was also anxious about the two bank employees who'd been held captive
00:35:08
since the previous morning more than 38 hours earlier the length of their ordeal meant they
00:35:14
were battling stress and exhaustion he convinced rosner and dygovsky to release them in exchange for
00:35:21
him and a colleague taking their place both employees looked extremely relieved as they were freed from the bus
00:35:29
and permitted to leave andrea blecker later told the media that she'd kept hoping she would be let go
00:35:37
but had resigned herself to the possibility of being shot instead journalists weren't the only observers
00:35:46
who'd gathered at the scene some police officers had arrived too and were debating whether or not to finally
00:35:53
act hands jurgen rosner's girlfriend marianne lerblick had walked from the bus to a public
00:36:00
restroom she'd taken a female hostage with her and had made sure to carry her gun
00:36:07
two policemen thought they could overpower her they hadn't sought or received permission from their higher ups to
00:36:15
attempt an arrest but the opportunity seemed too good to resist another officer confirmed that they
00:36:24
should go ahead with the spontaneous plan telling his colleagues if it is possible
00:36:30
get her four officers stood outside the bathroom and waited when they saw the blick walk out
00:36:39
they pounced two policemen grappled with her as she started to scream one placed his
00:36:46
hand over her mouth to muffle her cries they successfully wrestled allerblick to
00:36:52
the ground and removed her weapon before slapping handcuffs on her wrists now they had one of the three wanted
00:37:00
individuals in their custody but some were baffled by their decision a reporter later asked the question
00:37:11
why would you catch the most harmless person out of the three while the other two idiots remained
00:37:17
armed in the bus with the hostages meanwhile rosner and dygovsky were waiting for leblic to return
00:37:28
minutes ticked by and still there was no sign of her a visit to the bathroom shouldn't have
00:37:36
taken this long then rosner heard what sounded like his girlfriend screaming it dawned on the two bank
00:37:44
robbers that she must have been apprehended rosner was furious he began ranting they shouldn't have done this these pigs
00:37:55
these goddamn pigs these bastards speaking through photographer peter meyer he issued an ultimatum
00:38:05
return his girlfriend in five minutes or he would shoot a hostage a fierce debate ensued between the
00:38:16
police officers present not wanting to risk the lives of the hostages one policeman
00:38:22
insisted that lerblig be released and sent back to her accomplices but the two who'd arrested her were
00:38:29
reluctant to send her back after some back and forth they eventually agreed that they couldn't
00:38:36
ignore rosener's demands time was running out and the risk was too great the key to lerplex handcuffs was fetched
00:38:47
into the police prepared to let her go just as one of the officers went to turn the key
00:38:54
it snapped and broke off inside the lock now broken the key was useless and the handcuffs couldn't be removed
00:39:05
the police would have to find another way to remove them but the five minutes rosner had allotted
00:39:11
were almost up peter meyer was quickly sent over to the bus to alert the bank robbers that
00:39:18
lerblick was on her way meanwhile the police scrambled to remove her handcarves back on the bus tensions were mounting
00:39:31
five minutes had passed since rosner demanded the return of his girlfriend peter meyer had shared the police
00:39:39
message that lerblick would be coming back soon but there was no sign of her in a rage
00:39:47
rosner turned to eight-year-old hostage tadiana de georgie grabbed her arm and dragged her away
00:39:53
from her brother he pointed his gun at her head emmanuella rushed over and tried to pull
00:40:01
his younger sister to safety data dygovsky turned around to face the two siblings
00:40:08
and aimed his gun then he pulled the trigger and fired three times [Music] all of the hostages began screaming
00:40:20
tatiana saw her brother crumple in front of her and fall to the floor he had been shot in the head
00:40:31
one minute later marion lerblick boarded the bus having been released by the police
00:40:37
officers having shot her hostage rosner and dygovsky were once again eager to hit
00:40:45
the road with a lublic returned to them there was nothing left to wait for the two men pulled emanuela de georgie's
00:40:54
body from the bus and dumped it at the highway rest stop before spinning away from the scene
00:41:00
with their hostages [Music] the journalists who were covering the unfolding story
00:41:07
found emmanuella's body he was clad in denim jeans and a white t-shirt soaked in blood he looked lifeless
00:41:17
but a check of his vital signs revealed he was still alive despite sustaining three shots to the
00:41:23
head two press photographers dragged his body to safety news crews filmed them doing so
00:41:32
broadcasting live footage of the wounded and unconscious 15 year old across the country
00:41:39
one of the photographers held up emmanuela's head so that the crew could get a better
00:41:44
angle of his face inside the service station an attendant phoned for an ambulance
00:41:54
it took 20 minutes to arrive during the wait emmanuela bled to death along with 24 other hostages his little
00:42:06
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order with door dash subject to change terms apply [Music] the bus careened along the autobahn as
00:48:48
the bank robbers headed south west rosner had decided they should leave northwest to germany and make
00:48:55
their way to the border with the netherlands he'd heard that police in the neighboring country were friendlier than
00:49:02
those in west germany and hoped that they might go easier on them some journalists were still
00:49:10
enthusiastically pursuing them following the bus in their cars and taxis driving in vehicles behind the media
00:49:18
were numerous police officers to their frustration they couldn't get close to the bus
00:49:24
due to the row of cars in front at one stage as many as four press vehicles were driving side by side along
00:49:33
the autobahn making it impossible for the police to overtake them despite the fact that law enforcement
00:49:41
was prevented from reaching the bus rosner and dygovsky made their hostages stand
00:49:46
throughout the journey just in case the police decided to shoot through the windows
00:49:53
at one point a taxi carrying a journalist veered slightly too close to the bus this enraged rosner he aimed his gun and
00:50:04
fired through a window shattering the glass when police officers attempted to overtake the reporters and hone in on
00:50:12
the bus they collided with a truck one policeman was killed and two others were injured in the
00:50:19
collision [Music] west the german police had caught on to the bank robbers plan to flee to the
00:50:26
netherlands and notified customs officials who closed the border while the bus would be permitted to
00:50:33
cross the journalists following it would not at about 2 30 a.m on thursday august 18 the bus
00:50:43
reached the border the two bank robbers crossed over into the netherlands and parked the bus in a
00:50:53
remote forest near the town of aldenzale dutch police officers were waiting for them
00:51:00
they quickly informed rosner and dygovsky that they would not enter into any negotiations with them as
00:51:06
long as they were holding children hostage a standoff ensued after almost three hours the two bank
00:51:16
robbers finally agreed to release the children at 5 15 a.m three children including tatiana de georgi and two
00:51:26
women were allowed to disembark the bus now the dutch police were willing to negotiate
00:51:36
rosner and degovsky wanted a new vehicle a high-powered bmw if they received that then they would free even more
00:51:45
hostages [Music] german police set about preparing a dark grey bmw 735i unbeknownst to the bank robbers
00:51:56
they arranged it so that the vehicle's engine could be stopped via a remote control in their possession
00:52:04
although customs officials had closed the border some journalists had been able to sneak
00:52:09
across via back roads and alternate routes hundreds of german and dutch reporters
00:52:16
had descended on the scene to report live and snap more photographs of the ongoing crisis
00:52:24
dutch police were keeping a close eye on the bus and had orders to apprehend if the perpetrators attempted violence
00:52:33
then rosner's gun accidentally went off and a lick was hid in the leg thinking he was purposely shooting
00:52:42
officers started firing back hostages flung themselves to the floor as bullets rained on the bus
00:52:50
rosner began screaming into the police radio he'd been given that was not against you had happened
00:52:58
accidentally eventually police ceased fire and the air fell silent the bus was now riddled with
00:53:08
bullets due to the damage and the fact they were getting a new getaway car rosner and dykovsky agreed to free
00:53:17
almost all of their 20 remaining hostages however they still wanted to hold on to
00:53:24
two of them as a precaution they selected eighteen-year-old friends silke bischoff
00:53:30
and enos voitla [Music] at 6 30 a.m the bmw was delivered the men forced silke and dinus inside
00:53:42
along with marion lerblick then they sped off once again initially they headed west towards
00:53:51
amsterdam the capital of the netherlands with the dutch investigators in hot pursuit
00:53:58
but then they suddenly turned and began making their way back towards west to germany
00:54:05
just after 7am they crossed over the german border they raced through the state of north
00:54:12
rhine westphalia until they reached the city of cologne cologne is the fourth most popular city
00:54:23
in germany due to heavy bombing during world war ii it required significant reconstruction
00:54:30
during the post-war years through to the late 20th century by the end of the 1980s the rebuilding
00:54:38
of cologne's most famous landmarks was almost complete when the bank robbers and their
00:54:45
hostages reached the city it was mid-morning on thursday august 18. once again they had been followed by an
00:54:53
entourage of journalists and police as soon as they parked their car in a popular shopping district at the city
00:55:00
center they were surrounded by reporters curious onlookers who'd heard reports that the country's most wanted felons
00:55:09
had arrived in town also congregated in the area to catch a glimpse the hostage situation and associated
00:55:17
media circus made for a strange sight on the busy city streets pedestrians were bustling about and
00:55:25
nearby a folk band was busking rosner got out of the car and walked to a nearby bakery where he purchased some
00:55:35
bread rolls then he headed back to the bmw and sat behind the wheel next to his girlfriend dozens and dozens
00:55:45
of journalists had swarmed around the bmw some leaning across its bonnet and pressing against its sides
00:55:54
the air inside the car grew stuffy as bodies crowded around it microphones and cameras were shoved
00:56:01
through the open windows the journalists surrounding the car inadvertently provided a protective
00:56:08
barrier and made it impossible for police to approach degovsky remained in the back of the
00:56:15
vehicle wedged between silke and dinus while chain smoking cigarettes and casually holding a pistol
00:56:22
in his right hand occasionally he used a pair of binoculars to peer out the rear
00:56:28
window keeping his eyes peeled for police when a reporter asked rosner what they
00:56:35
were doing in the city silke sarcastically quipped from the back seat visiting the cathedral of cologne
00:56:44
rosner explained that they had been thwarted at every turn by german police refusing to negotiate
00:56:52
marion lerblick expressed her regret that emmanuela de georgie had been killed but
00:56:58
blamed law enforcement for detaining her instead of the two men she insisted that they were looking
00:57:05
after silke and dinus adding we are not harming them and we don't want to harm them
00:57:14
[Music] rosnell was aware that he and dygovsky would be facing enormous ramifications
00:57:20
for murdering emmanuella he expressed his frustration at the now two day ordeal but said that if the police tried to
00:57:28
arrest them they would kill both hostages then take their own lives he placed the
00:57:35
barrel of the gun in his mouth to prove how serious he was dygovsky agreed with his accomplice
00:57:44
stating we aren't going to negotiate with police anymore because we know that leads to nothing i
00:57:51
want to say through the news media that the police should back off [Music] as he chatted with the journalists he
00:57:59
nonchalantly pressed his gun to silke's neck and head at one point a reporter complained that
00:58:07
he hadn't gotten the picture he wanted and demanded hold the gun to her temple again
00:58:14
i don't have a photograph yet silke still looked calm and occasionally even managed to give a small smile
00:58:24
only her white eyes occasionally betrayed a hint of alarm when a reporter asked silke how she was
00:58:31
holding up she said she was fine however she was worried that the police would ignore the bank robbers demands
00:58:39
which could lead to another person being killed she pleaded just do what they request
00:58:47
and don't try to interfere i'm scared of that the two bank robbers gave interview
00:58:54
after interview reporters helped them by supplying cups of coffee and attempting to negotiate on
00:59:01
their behalf suggesting they trade their hostages for police officers when plain clothes officers were sent
00:59:09
over in the hopes they might be able to get closer than their uniformed counterparts
00:59:14
some journalists pointed them out to the bank robbers rosner was queried as to what would
00:59:21
happen if the police attempted anything he simply answered then there's going to
00:59:28
be a bloodbath here earlier that morning udu robel the deputy editor of the cologne daily
00:59:38
express had headed to his local tennis club for a friendly game he'd taken some time off from work and
00:59:46
hadn't watched television or listened to the radio for a couple of days as rorbel headed into the club's
00:59:53
cafeteria his attention was drawn to a tv set showing the morning news for the first
01:00:00
time he learnt of the events that had gripped west to germany over the past two days
01:00:07
realising he was missing out on one of the country's biggest stories he raced to his car and headed downtown
01:00:14
soon he'd joined the enormous crowd of reporters gathered around the bank robbers bmw
01:00:22
robel managed to push his way to the car to speak with rosner handovsky directly
01:00:28
he soon established a rapport with the bank robbers he could tell that both men were growing
01:00:34
increasingly agitated and the situation was becoming more dangerous with every passing second
01:00:42
rouble tried to create some space around the vehicle he began waving his arms motioning to
01:00:48
the other journalists around him to move back when they were reluctant to do so he tried pushing them away
01:00:58
some of the undercover officers in the crowd began wondering if now was their moment to strike
01:01:04
one officer had succeeded in getting within touching distance of the bank robbers
01:01:09
and thought an arrest could be possible but they suspected the risk was still too great
01:01:17
all of a sudden rosner leapt from the car and aimed his gun at the crowd anxiously
01:01:23
he turned to udu robel and asked how to get to the autobahn adding we've got to get out of here now
01:01:31
my buddy is about to lose it completely robel began describing the fastest route
01:01:38
but rosner was impatient he asked the raw bell to get in the car and direct them there himself
01:01:46
robel was uncertain the situation was rapidly spiraling out of control and there was every possibility it could
01:01:54
end in disaster however he also realized that this was a unique opportunity to cover the story in
01:02:03
a way none of the other journalists could in a split second robel had made up his
01:02:09
mind he climbed into the back seat of the car and took a seat next to silke bischoff
01:02:20
rosner slowly pulled the car away from the crowd and left the crowded city streets following
01:02:25
roarbell's directions to the autobahn robel chatted openly as they drove he assumed the police had bugged the car
01:02:35
and hoped he might be able to coax some useful information out of the two felons but his attempts
01:02:42
at conversation annoyed degovsky he pointed his gun at the journalist and demanded that he shut
01:02:49
up after that the group travelled in silence the bank robbers had no particular destination in mind as they sped in a
01:03:00
southeast direction although driving along the autobahn left them exposed it also allowed them to monitor those
01:03:09
who were following them yet again the press and the police were hot on the bank robbers hills
01:03:16
between 20 and 30 vehicles were following the bmw law enforcement arranged for the
01:03:24
autobahn to be shut down in one direction so no one else could join the chase after about 40 minutes the bmw reached a
01:03:33
service station outside the city of ziegborg rosner and dykovsky pulled over and
01:03:40
kicked robel out of the car having got what they needed from him the journalist stood watching as the bmw
01:03:48
took off again when news crews arrived at the location shortly after they conducted a live interview with him
01:03:57
he described degovsky as completely on the edge exhausted and ready for anything
01:04:05
he said that he has nothing to lose he shot a 15 year old and he's not going to prison for a life sentence
01:04:14
there is going to be a bloodbath if the police don't leave them alone he asked me to pass this on to the
01:04:20
police and press as he spoke robel suddenly felt himself go weak at the knees the reality of what had happened and the
01:04:32
fact that he could have been killed suddenly sunk in he was notified that police officers were on their way to
01:04:40
obtain a statement from him but all he could think about was the article he planned to write in detailing
01:04:47
his experience the bmw continued along the autobahn rosner was driving south straight
01:04:58
towards the neighbouring state of rhineland-palatinate as they drove digovsky leaned over and
01:05:05
whispered in hostage enos's that they were sorry for having taken them especially given the girl's young
01:05:11
age he told her that he and rosner would pull over somewhere and release them once they were in the next state and the
01:05:19
night had fallen enes and silke felt a sense of relief they relaxed enough to sip on some cans
01:05:27
of beer as the car travelled along the highway with the two girls drinking a toast to
01:05:33
her happy ending law enforcement was still in hot pursued by now it had been 54 hours since the
01:05:43
bank hold up in gladbach and patience was wearing thin police had missed one opportunity after
01:05:51
another to apprehend the bank robbers the fact that they'd killed a 15 year old in cold blood
01:05:58
proved how dangerous they were an order had finally been sent from operational headquarters
01:06:05
dictating that they mustn't be allowed to flee to any more cities the perpetrators must be apprehended as
01:06:12
soon as possible the leader of cologne's se car unit objected believing that the risk to the hostages
01:06:21
was still too great but he was overruled several armored mercedes were dispatched
01:06:30
with the aim of intercepting the bmw and running it off the road an ambush site was set up several kilometers
01:06:38
from the state line and just across the border the rhineland paladinate sc car were
01:06:44
poised and ready to strike before the bmw had been given to rosner and degovsky police outfitted it with a device that
01:06:54
would allow them to cut the engine using a remote control however the remote had accidentally been left
01:07:02
behind with some other officers who were further back on the autobahn it wouldn't work from such a distance
01:07:10
and this meant that they'd had to quickly devise a backup plan by 1 45 pm the bmw was just a few
01:07:20
kilometers from the state border helicopters were flying overhead and hundreds of spectators had gathered on a
01:07:28
nearby bridge above the highway to observe the pursuit dozens of journalists were also at the
01:07:34
scene still following this story on the other side of the highway drivers had stopped their cars so they
01:07:42
could watch too suddenly officers were given the go-ahead to attack a grey mercedes zeroed in
01:07:52
on the bmw and rammed it from one side sending it skidding next police threw flash grenades to stun the
01:08:01
felons with blinding flashes of light the bmw came to a complete stop inside rosner and dygovsky began
01:08:11
shouting silke appeared to sense that something awful was about to happen her voice was gripped with fear as she
01:08:20
screamed at her friend jump out enos jump enos scrambled to find the handle on the
01:08:28
car door nearest to her and yanked it open she leapt out then scurried to a nearby ditch and
01:08:35
clambered inside as she lay there she heard the sound of gunshots ringing out rosner digovsky and the police were all
01:08:47
shooting at one another between 20 to 30 shots were fired then finally there was a heavy silence
01:08:58
police had managed to hit rosner and dygovsky subduing both men when they raced over to the bmw
01:09:06
they found the two felons had sustained significant injuries enos voitla had managed to escape the
01:09:13
vehicle and was lying in a ditch by the road she'd suffered minor injuries as had
01:09:20
marion lerblick silke bischoff was still in the back seat of the car there was a bullet wound in her chest
01:09:35
an officer frantically performed cpr on silke as medical assistants helicopters and
01:09:41
ambulances sped to the scene when they arrived they rushed to the car while shouting
01:09:48
at the police what have you guys done here they were unable to revive silke she had been shot directly in the heart
01:09:58
and had died her body was covered with a sheet rosner and degovsky were quickly handcuffed and forced to lie
01:10:08
face down on the road with their noses pressed against the bitumen marianne lerblick was also arrested
01:10:18
other officers made a beeline towards the many members of the press who were standing nearby
01:10:24
filming and photographing everything a photographer had his camera snatched from him with the officer
01:10:32
alleging that he was documenting a police investigation without permission the photographer was
01:10:38
warned that he would be arrested if he didn't leave he managed to hide a roll of film that
01:10:44
he'd already shot but lost the second roll that was still inside the camera a police spokesperson addressed the
01:10:52
press informing them that a hostage had been killed journalist udu robel had gone to a local
01:11:02
police station to file a report about his time with the bank robbers when he heard the news that silke
01:11:08
bischoff had died he felt a sense of shock wash over him having been seated in the car with both
01:11:15
girls not long earlier when he later went back to his office to finish his article for
01:11:21
the following day's paper he tried to write it from the point of view of silke imagining how the last moments of her
01:11:29
life played out silke bischoff's parents hadn't even known that their daughter had been taken
01:11:36
hostage until earlier that day although she hadn't returned home on wednesday august 17 they weren't
01:11:43
concerned as they believed she was staying at her boyfriend's house they'd only learnt the truth that
01:11:50
morning upon seeing the front page of their local newspaper it showed a photograph of silker sitting
01:11:58
in the back seat of a car with a gun held to her neck she was tilting her head back her
01:12:05
expression blank as dygovsky watched her with a cigarette hanging from his mouth
01:12:13
after that her devastated family had monitored every second of the situation when silke's mother karen found out her
01:12:22
daughter and anus were the last two remaining hostages she became utterly terrified at what
01:12:28
might happen next when the family saw footage of the collision and subsequent shootout on the
01:12:35
autobahn they sat together and prayed for silke to survive two hours later a police representative
01:12:44
dressed entirely in black knocked on their front door karen knew then that her daughter had been killed
01:12:54
she later despaired i would have helped her if only i knew i would have jumped on the bus together
01:13:02
with my husband to protect my daughter [Music] it was determined that silke had been
01:13:14
killed by a bullet from rosner's gun which he'd accidentally aimed at her while shooting at the police
01:13:21
but silke's family held the police equally responsible for their daughter's death
01:13:27
they couldn't understand why officers had opened fire on the bank robber's vehicle
01:13:32
when they knew that silke was inside her mother criticized their actions quote she could not survive that why did they
01:13:43
do that why that will always stay with me always the police maintained that rosner and
01:13:54
dygovsky had started shooting first leaving them with no option but to return fire
01:14:01
furthermore they claimed to have made every effort to protect those inside the vehicle
01:14:07
such as by waiting until the bmw was stationary before ramming it but their version of events was disputed by
01:14:16
survivor enos voitla in an interview with the magazine der spiegel enos said that before the
01:14:24
deadly confrontation the mood in the bmw had been upbeat she and silke had been assured by their
01:14:32
captors that they would be safely home soon the car had been traveling at 100 kilometers per hour when the police's
01:14:41
mercedes suddenly appeared from behind causing rosner and dygovsky to panic then the car hit ours our car had
01:14:51
stopped by the time the gangsters returned to the fire there was speculation that police from
01:14:59
north rhine westphalia had rushed the attack because they wanted to bring the crisis
01:15:04
to a conclusion on their own turf if the bank robbers had managed to flee across the state border
01:15:11
the case would have passed over to law enforcement in rhineland-palatinate on sunday august 21 three days after
01:15:21
silke's death her uncle gerald bischoff appeared at a press conference to announce his
01:15:27
family's plans to sue those who ordered the attack emmanuella the georgie's relatives joined them
01:15:35
arguing that the police had provoked the two bank robbers by arresting marian lerblick without permission
01:15:42
a week after the incident lawyers on behalf of the two families filed criminal negligence suits against police
01:15:50
in bremen and the state of north rhine westphalia they argued that police had numerous
01:15:57
opportunities when they could have intervened and placed the two perpetrators under
01:16:01
arrest but repeatedly failed to do so the families weren't the only ones who were angry
01:16:10
in the days immediately following the tragedy a poll was cast in which 1708 western germans were asked
01:16:18
for their opinions on the case 93 of respondents couldn't understand why police hadn't intervened earlier
01:16:29
one sc car senior official who'd been tasked with handling the crisis was reiner casting he was furious at the
01:16:38
unit's operations management for not allowing his team to strike against rosner and dygovsky earlier
01:16:45
management had continually stalled officers on the ground from taking action when the two men were stopped in cologne
01:16:52
for an extended period kesting was an experienced officer who'd successfully arrested notorious
01:17:00
terrorists in the past but his dismay at the bungling of the glatbeck hostage crisis
01:17:07
led to his resignation decades later he finally gave an interview to focus magazine
01:17:15
in which he stated i was a coward i am jointly responsible for the death of silke bischoff
01:17:24
[Music] a parliamentary inquiry was ordered into the events surrounding the 54-hour long
01:17:34
crisis it found that there had been several times when police missed opportunities
01:17:40
to take down the perpetrators prior to the bus hijack and the deaths of emmanuella
01:17:46
silke and the police officer who was killed during the car chase there was the time
01:17:53
when they stopped at a roadside cafeteria with the two bank employees and sat at a
01:17:58
separate table then there was the occasion when rosner and olerblick went shopping for an hour
01:18:05
leaving dygovsky behind with the two hostages tagovsky had dozed off but the police
01:18:12
surveilling the scene neglected to notice martin thomas who was part of the investigation committee
01:18:20
later stated it was very hard to understand the actions of the police you ask yourself
01:18:27
why they didn't do anything earlier and all of a sudden go into action when the lives of the two
01:18:34
girls are at such a high risk some officers defended their actions saying that it was
01:18:41
easy to judge with the benefit of hindsight but they'd tried everything possible to enter the
01:18:47
crisis safely many people were equally as angry at the media for their role in the event
01:18:56
in a televised interview the interior minister of the state of northern westphalia
01:19:01
accused the journalists of derailing crucial police operations he saw the final showdown between law
01:19:09
enforcement and the bank robbers as unavoidable given how drawn out and increasingly
01:19:14
dangerous the situation had become other politicians echoed his words with one remarking that it was troubling that
01:19:24
two criminals got a public podium through media coverage reporters were seen as having encouraged
01:19:32
rosner and dygovsky in their crimes by giving them attention and to notoriety ratings later revealed
01:19:39
that 13 million people had tuned in to watch their televised interviews a forensic psychiatrist later speculated
01:19:48
that the attention had been gratifying for the two men who'd never received anything like it
01:19:54
before the head of the country's largest journalists union described the media's involvement as
01:20:04
the darkest hour of german journalism since the end of world war ii following the controversial coverage
01:20:12
of the crisis the german press council issued several reprimands and introduced restrictions such as
01:20:19
banning reporters from conducting interviews with perpetrators while they were in the process of
01:20:25
committing a crime journalist udu rawbel was offered a new job at one of the country's biggest
01:20:33
tabloids he felt significant guilt for his actions during the gladbeck crisis he was especially ashamed of having
01:20:42
written a story that focused on the moments leading up to silke's death which he
01:20:47
described as squeezing the very last drops out of the story years later in an interview with the bbc
01:20:57
rorbell said he'd often wondered if he was the reporter from hell or simply a human
01:21:04
being trying to de-escalate this situation ultimately he concluded that he was both
01:21:18
it was almost one year before hans jurgen rosner dida dagovsky and marion lerblick first
01:21:25
faced court to hear the charges against them they were each facing two counts of
01:21:31
murder and numerous charges of attempted murder kidnapping and extortion also in the court were the victims
01:21:39
families and survivors of the gladback hostage crisis who listened intently to the proceedings
01:21:47
the three defendants expressions remained blank as each charge was read aloud it was another two years before their
01:21:56
trials went ahead all three were found guilty on march 22 1991. rosner and dygovsky
01:22:06
both received life sentences with a minimum of 24 years while lerblick was sentenced to nine
01:22:13
years she ultimately served only six and has since been released the north rhine westphalian ministry of
01:22:23
justice blocked all requests for interviews with rosner and dygovsky but the two have shown no interest in
01:22:31
speaking to journalists since the events of august 1988. in 2017 news broke that dargofsky had permission
01:22:41
to leave prison for day trips the process was a stage in his rehabilitation and designed to prepare
01:22:48
him for being granted conditional parole reporters for tabloid papers snapped photographs of him as he strolled
01:22:57
through a town purchasing snacks and soft drinks he was now 61 years old and was bald
01:23:04
with a paunchy build in august 2018 30 years after the glackback hostage crisis it was announced that dieter digoski was
01:23:17
being released on parole he'd been a model prisoner during his incarceration and experts gave him a positive
01:23:25
prognosis for rehabilitation he has since changed his name that same year it was announced that
01:23:35
hans jurgen rosner would likely be released in 2019 pending good behaviour tagovsky's parole coincided with the
01:23:47
release of a two-episode television drama about the crisis titled 54 hours the glad back hostage
01:23:54
crisis some survivors and victims families were dismayed by the timing of the show's
01:24:00
release johnny had been six years old when the bus he was riding on was hijacked by
01:24:07
rosner and degovsky his family had recently moved to west germany from sri lanka
01:24:13
and the experience was incredibly traumatic for the young boy now a doctor he said that he had never
01:24:21
quite recovered from the incident he gave an interview on a late night talk show saying that he had no plans to
01:24:28
watch the series because it's like a homage to dargofsky who has now been freed emmanuella the georgie's family also
01:24:39
spoke out against dagovsky's release his brother fabio now aged 40 stated he is free
01:24:48
while will suffer for a lifetime i often dream of emmanuella he's sitting in the bus and then the
01:24:55
shot comes and i wake up [Music] emmanuela's sister tatiana who'd witnessed his murder
01:25:04
revealed she could still hear him whispering to her don't be scared i'll protect you
01:25:12
enos voitla feared for years that when the men were released they would turn up at her front door
01:25:19
stating i will always be a victim of those two guys in an interview with news magazine de
01:25:29
stern silke bischoff's mother karen spoke of watching the television series it felt as though she was seeing her
01:25:38
daughter again one of the most difficult parts was seeing the recreation of dygovsky
01:25:44
holding a gun to her daughter's neck in reality journalists had helped to stage the scene
01:25:52
and it resulted in a notorious photograph that was splashed across newspapers in the wake of silke's death
01:26:00
karen told the bbc silke was brave very brave i wouldn't have coped in the way she did
01:26:09
at the beginning i used to have nightmares because of that picture i can handle it today it's still painful
01:26:18
but i don't have to look away now [Music] [Music] you

Badges

This episode stands out for the following:

  • 95
    Most shocking
  • 90
    Most dramatic
  • 90
    Most heartbreaking
  • 90
    Most iconic moment

Episode Highlights

  • The Bank Robbery Begins
    On August 16, 1988, two masked men held bank employees at gunpoint in Gladbach, Germany.
    @ 02m 55s
    April 10, 2021
  • Media Attention Escalates
    As the standoff continued, journalists scrambled for a scoop, leading to unexpected interactions with the robbers.
    “I only want to speak through the media.”
    @ 11m 19s
    April 10, 2021
  • Bremen Mayor Criticizes Media
    Amidst the chaos, Bremen's mayor condemned the media's aggressive coverage of the hostage situation.
    “I think you've crossed the line.”
    @ 24m 28s
    April 10, 2021
  • Impromptu Press Conference
    Rosner gave an unexpected press conference outside the bus, revealing his lack of morals.
    “I don't have any morals.”
    @ 24m 57s
    April 10, 2021
  • Hostage Situation Escalates
    Rosner threatens a hostage after demanding his girlfriend's return, raising tensions.
    “You [ __ ] [ __ ] off or it is going to fire up in here.”
    @ 29m 25s
    April 10, 2021
  • Tragic Turn of Events
    Emmanuella de Georgie is shot during the standoff, leading to chaos.
    “The next one is going to fly out of the bus.”
    @ 29m 35s
    April 10, 2021
  • Police Communication Breakdown
    Photographer Peter Meyer expresses frustration over police handling of the situation.
    “I really don't know what the police are thinking.”
    @ 34m 55s
    April 10, 2021
  • The Hostage Situation Escalates
    As the standoff continues, tensions rise and hostages' lives hang in the balance.
    “We aren't going to negotiate with police anymore because we know that leads to nothing.”
    @ 57m 45s
    April 10, 2021
  • A Mother's Heartbreak
    Karen Bischoff learns of her daughter's kidnapping and faces the unimaginable.
    “I would have jumped on the bus together with my husband to protect my daughter.”
    @ 01h 13m 02s
    April 10, 2021
  • Tragic Turn of Events
    In a chaotic shootout, Silke Bischoff is tragically killed by a stray bullet.
    “It was determined that Silke had been killed by a bullet from Rosner's gun.”
    @ 01h 13m 14s
    April 10, 2021
  • Victims' Families Speak Out
    Families of the victims express their anger and trauma over the release of the perpetrators.
    “He is free while I will suffer for a lifetime.”
    @ 01h 24m 48s
    April 10, 2021
  • Silke's Mother's Pain
    Karen Bischoff shares her emotional struggle after watching the recreation of her daughter's ordeal.
    “It felt as though she was seeing her daughter again.”
    @ 01h 25m 36s
    April 10, 2021

Episode Quotes

  • We want to take them with us.
    54 hours that gripped West Germany in fear
  • I think you've crossed the line.
    54 hours that gripped West Germany in fear
  • I really don't know what the police are thinking.
    54 hours that gripped West Germany in fear
  • We are not harming them and we don't want to harm them.
    54 hours that gripped West Germany in fear
  • Then there's going to be a bloodbath here.
    54 hours that gripped West Germany in fear
  • I will always be a victim of those two guys.
    54 hours that gripped West Germany in fear

Key Moments

  • Home Safety00:47
  • Surreal Situation25:42
  • Police Frustration34:55
  • Tragic Shooting40:11
  • Tensions Rise57:45
  • Tragic Shootout1:13:14
  • Police Controversy1:14:01
  • Survivor's Fear1:25:15

Words per Minute Over Time

Vibes Breakdown