Alfred Klaus

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Alfred Klaus (* 1919 in Koenigsberg , East Prussia ; † February 16, 2008 in Hamburg ) was a German detective who gained great public fame for his role in the fight against terrorism of the RAF .

While politics, the media and the judiciary saw the “Baader-Mahler-Meinhof-Gruppe” predominantly as a criminal and liked to speak of a “Baader-Mahler-Meinhof-Gang”, Klaus recognized the ideological moment of the phenomenon early on due to an intensive study of sources. Since he was interested in empathizing with the terrorists' thinking, colleagues ironically referred to him as the “chief ideologist of the RAF”.

In 1971 Klaus was involved in setting up the “Special Commission on Terrorism” and presented a “Baader Meinhof Preliminary Report”, which was the first important police document on the subject.

During his research, he also visited the families of the RAF members, especially in order to research their biographical origins. Furthermore, if possible, the relatives should urge the terrorists to end their criminal enterprise. This activity earned him the name "family bull" within the RAF.

Klaus was also active in the course of the German autumn of 1977 and tried to find a compromise. However, this failed because of the unyielding attitude of Chancellor Helmut Schmidt . His role at the time is portrayed in the docudrama Death Play .

Even after his retirement in 1979, Klaus was available for research projects and supported all people who worked on the subject of "History of the RAF" (especially Butz Peters , Stefan Aust ). He last lived in Hamburg.

Literature / TV documentaries

  • Stefan Aust: The Baader Meinhof Complex, Goldmann Verlag, Hamburg 2008, ISBN 978-3442469017
  • Butz Peters: Deadly mistake: The history of the RAF, Fischer (Tb.), Frankfurt / M. 2007, ISBN 978-3596172658
  • Heinrich Breloer: Death Game. From the Schleyer kidnapping to Mogadishu. A documentary narrative, Kiepenheuer & Witsch 1997, ISBN 978-3462025972 , (book and TV documentation )
  • Renate Stegmüller: They called him "family bull", From the life of a detective, BR 1999 (TV documentary)
  • Alfred Klaus and Gabriele Droste: They called me a family bull: My years as a special investigator against the RAF, Hoffmann & Campe, Hamburg 2008, ISBN 978-3455500769 (autobiography)

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Died: Alfred Klaus . In: Der Spiegel . No. 9 , 2008 ( online ).
  2. ↑ a b http://www.tagesspiegel.de/zeitung/in-der-kinderstube-der-raf/353326.html
personal data
SURNAME Klaus, Alfred
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Family bull
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German detective
DATE OF BIRTH 1919
PLACE OF BIRTH Koenigsberg , East Prussia
DATE OF DEATH February 16, 2008
Place of death Hamburg