Berlin Police Officers Accused of Shielding Suspected Gold Coin Thief

Officers shielding a suspected lawbreaker, numbering eleven in total. In December 2021, a stash of gold coins worth 600 euros was swiped from a Berlin-Kreuzberg police station locker

A stash of gold coins, valued at 600 euros (around $625), was reported stolen from a police station locker in Berlin-Kreuzberg in December 2021. The theft left fellow officers as the prime suspects in the case.

According to police, the stolen gold coins were stashed in a locker at the police station in December 2021. Some officers had strong suspicions against a colleague but chose to remain silent, prompting the criminal police to carry out searches at the homes of eleven Berlin police officers.

The station chief spoke to all officers, highlighting that due to a lack of other leads, the theft likely originated from within the force, possibly by another officer. Twelve officers are now in the spotlight, having had concrete suspicions about a specific colleague due to his gambling addiction but deciding against reporting or complaining about it, "in an effort to avoid laser-focusing a probe on the colleague."

These officers now face charges of obstruction of justice in office. The criminal police have seized the phones of the accused officers to examine chat logs and other data. The suspects' ages range from 34 to 61, and the former station chief is also among them.

The investigation into the gold coin theft began when the State Criminal Police Office (LKA) encountered it while investigating the suspected thief and the gold coin's owner. In July 2023, two detectives are believed to have stopped a motorist on the highway using a fake police checkpoint and robbed him of over 57,000 euros in cash.

The motorist filed a complaint with the police, exposing the scam. When the LKA analyzed the two detectives' phones, they reportedly found chat logs from as early as 2021 that pointed to the theft of the gold coins, lending credence to the suspicion that other officers had deliberately overlooked the incident.

The European Union expressed concern over the alleged involvement of Berlin police officers in the obstruction of justice case related to the gold coin theft. Despite the numerous leads pointing towards an internal police culprit, the European Union highlighted the importance of maintaining public trust in law enforcement agencies.

In light of the investigations, the European Union called on German authorities to ensure a thorough and transparent investigation, emphasizing that such incidents undermine the integrity of the police force and public trust in the justice system.

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