Horst Kullack
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Horst Kullack (born November 20, 1948 in Großziethen ; † January 21, 1972 in Königs Wusterhausen ) was a victim of the Berlin Wall . Members of the GDR border troops seriously injured him while trying to escape. He succumbed to the injuries in a hospital 21 days later.
Life
He grew up with five siblings in Großziethen near Berlin. After school, which he finished after eight years, he worked as an unskilled transport worker in Zeesen . Horst Kullack was mentally retarded and was often exposed to beatings in his childhood. In 1967 he tried to flee the GDR for the first time. After the failed attempt, he came into conflict with the authorities more often, including because of defamation of the state. There were no convictions because Horst Kullack was classified by a psychiatrist as not sane. As a result of his childhood experiences, he suffered from depression and expressed suicidal intentions .
On December 31, 1971, Horst Kullack went to the border between his hometown and Berlin-Tempelhof . At around 10 p.m. he knocked on a window of a house in the restricted area to find out whether he had reached the border. He admitted that he intended to flee to the resident. The latter contacted the representative of the People's Police, who informed the border guards nearby. Horst Kullack reached the hinterland fence, stepped over it and hunched over to the barrier wall. A searchlight was pointed at him. Two border guards fired a total of four shots at the fugitive, who was hit by a bullet in the stomach and collapsed seriously injured. The border guards hid the injured man in the vehicle blocking ditch to hide him from view from the west. He was later transported away in a bucket car for medical care. After five unsuccessful operations, he succumbed to internal injuries on January 21, 1972 in the Königs Wusterhausen district hospital.
The death of Horst Kullack became known after the funeral in West Berlin when the dead man's uncle, who lived there, filed criminal charges against the then unknown shooters. In 1995, a wall rifle trial took place against them before the Potsdam district court, which ended with youth sentences of 15 months on probation for both defendants. A memorial cross is placed at the location of the shooting.
literature
- Hans-Hermann Hertle , Maria Nooke : The victims of the Berlin Wall 1961 - 1989. A biographical handbook. Edited by the Center for Contemporary History Potsdam and the Berlin Wall Foundation. Links, Berlin 2009, ISBN 978-3-86153-517-1 .
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Kullack, Horst |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German casualty from the Berlin Wall |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 20, 1948 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Großziethen |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 21, 1972 |
| Place of death | Berlin |