Broumov u Tachova
Treppenstein 3, 95695 Mähring, Německo
  • Story
  • Place

An East German was shot a mile away from the border

Available in: English | Česky

In early August 1977, close to Broumov in the Tachov District, some 1,600 metres from the state border, a border guard shot and killed the East German citizen Gerhard Schmidt while he was attempting to reach West Germany. Although the private did not fire until after repeated calls to stop were ignored by the fugitive, he probably committed a criminal offence, as the distance to the border did not necessitate such extreme action. Schmidt, a 38-year-old construction engineer from Stassfurt, hoped to cross the border near Broumov with his wife and three children. While the family waited in hiding, Schmidt cut through the conductors of the first signal barrier. He was seen by Private Milan Polčík of the Border Guard. Despite the guardsman’s warnings the whole family crossed the barrier and continued into the inner section of the border zone. Polčík gave chase, shot Schmidt, and detained the others. Even though Schmidt was given first aid and was taken to hospital for surgery, he succumbed to his wound. His family was handed over to officials of the DDR. At the time the investigation exonerated Polčík’s actions, as according to contemporary documents “he did not have any other way of stopping their escape.” The private was rewarded with a holiday for “intending to use his weapon only against the man and not wanting to endanger the woman or children with his fire.” The Czech Office for the Documentation and Investigation of the Crimes of Communism came to the conclusion that a criminal offence was committed, as the guardsman had milder means for stopping the group at his disposal. However, the General Prosecution Office of the Slovak Republic deemed the prosecution case of the Slovak citizen Polčík to be statute barred.

Hodnocení


Hodnotilo 0 lidí
Abyste mohli hodnotit musíte se přihlásit! 

Routes

Not a part of any route.

Comments

No comments yet.

Broumov u Tachova

Available in: English | Česky

Broumov na Tachovsku (německý název Prommenhof) leží čtyři kilometry od státních hranic v dnešní CHKO Český les. Obec náležela od 16. století do zemského obranného systému a byla obývána svobodnými strážci hranic. V 18. století proslula těžbou a zpracováváním mědi a železa, ale po druhé světové válce ji neblaze poznamenal odsun německého obyvatelstva a blízkost železné opony. Připomínkou dřívější slávy obce jsou dva barokní zámečky v jejím katastru a romantický zámeček Nový Haimhausen. Mezi místní památky se počítají i chráněné stromy ‒ smrky, jasan a dubová alej. V sedmdesátých letech 20. století náležela broumovská rota Pohraniční stráže pod 3. prapor 5. brigády se sídlem v Chebu.

Please enter your e-mail and password
Forgotten password
Change Password