Czesław Kukuczka
Czesław Kukuczka | |
---|---|
Gunshot wounds | |
Resting place | Kamienica, Poland |
Monuments | Window of Remembrance, Berlin Wall Memorial, Berlin |
Known for | One of three non-German escapees to die at the Berlin Wall |
Czesław Kukuczka (23 July 1935 – 29 March 1974) was a Polish man who became the
Biography
Czesław Jan Kukuczka was born on 23 July 1935, in Kamienica, Poland, and grew up there. As a young boy, the local magazine “Gorczańskie Wieści" mentioned him as "the most active of the hotheads - young, full of ideas, and capable of dedication." At the age of 17, Kukuczka was recruited to participate in the construction of Nowa Huta, a socialist model city on the eastern outskirts of Kraków being built by the Polish People's Republic, but soon returned home disillusioned with his work there. A year later, at 18 years-old, Kukuczka was found guilty of embezzlement and sentenced to two and a half years in prison in Nowy Sącz and Jaworzno, but was released after one year on parole. Shortly after his release Kukuczka was married and would father three children, and subsequently worked again in construction before working as a firefighter for the fire department in Jaworzno. On Sunday, 3 March 1974, Kukuczka disappeared without a trace and was not seen again until appearing on 29 March 1974, in East Berlin, East Germany.[1][2][3]
Death
On Friday, 29 March 1974, at 12:30 PM, Kukuczka arrived at the Polish Embassy in East Berlin claiming to have an important message, and was admitted to the embassy without further control. He would be hosted by Colonel Maksymilian Karnowski, a member of the East Berlin operational group of the
Kukuczka departed the Polish Embassy at 2:40 PM with the necessary documents, and was transported to Bahnhof Friedrichstraße by a car belonging to the
Kukuczka's widow in Poland, Emilia, was presented with an urn containing his remains on 24 May 1974, along with a package containing personal effects from her deceased husband, and a death certificate, all presented by the district prosecutor. The next day, the mayor of Kamienica reported that a church burial had taken place with only Kukuczka's close family in attendance, and the full details regarding his death, such as the fake bomb and the visit to the embassy, were not made known to the family or local residents until after the Berlin Wall fell.[1][2][3]
Trial
A trial against Kukuczka's alleged murderer will begin at the Berlin Regional Court on March 14, 2024.[4]
Aftermath
Kukuczka is notable as one of only three known escapee deaths at the Berlin Wall to be neither
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e Biography at Chronik der Mauer.de
- ^ a b c d e Biography Archived 17 October 2017 at the Wayback Machine at Gedenkstätte Berliner Mauer.de
- ^ a b c d e Grenzübergang Friedrichstraße Forscher rekonstruieren Fall um Mauertoten (Researchers at the former Friedrichstraße border crossing reconstruct the case around masonry), Berliner Zeitung Onliine, 6 November 2016 (in German)
- ^ https://www.berliner-zeitung.de/mensch-metropole/toedlicher-schuss-vor-50-jahren-an-ddr-kontrollpunkt-ex-stasi-mann-in-berlin-wegen-mordes-vor-gericht-li.2195412