Police Headquarters: The Bloody End of the 'St. Pauli Killer' 40 Years Ago
Translated from German, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.
At a glance
- The article recounts the dramatic events of July 29, 1986, when a contract killer, Werner Pinzner, murdered a prosecutor, his wife, and himself in a Hamburg police station.
- Pinzner, nicknamed 'Mucki,' was being interrogated about five murders when he used a smuggled revolver to carry out the killings.
- His wife, Jutta, and his lawyer, Isolde Oechsle-Misfeld, were implicated in smuggling the weapon into the police headquarters.
Forty years ago, a shocking act of violence unfolded within the Hamburg police headquarters, ending the life of contract killer Werner Pinzner and two others. On July 29, 1986, Pinzner, known as 'Mucki,' was being interrogated about five murders when he suddenly produced a revolver. He fatally shot prosecutor Wolfgang Bistry before turning the weapon on his wife, Jutta, and then himself.
With this revolver, the 'St. Pauli Killer' Werner Pinzner shot a prosecutor, his wife Jutta, and himself 40 years ago.
Two police officers managed to escape the room unharmed, while a stenographer and Pinzner's lawyer, Isolde Oechsle-Misfeld, were spared. Pinzner, who had been arrested three months earlier, confessed to murders committed in Kiel, Hamburg, and Munich, reportedly carrying out killings for money on behalf of underworld figures in Hamburg's St. Pauli district.
Pinzner's wife smuggled this revolver into the police headquarters on July 29, 1986, under her skirt.
The murder weapon, a .38 caliber revolver, was smuggled into the police station by Pinzner's wife. She concealed the weapon, wrapped in a kitchen towel, in her handbag after placing it in her slip. The weapon was intended for use during the interrogation in a secured room on the fourth floor of the police building.
The lawyer had participated in procuring the revolver and knew about the plans of the violent criminal.
Pinzner's lawyer, Isolde Oechsle-Misfeld, was later convicted in 1992 for aiding and abetting murder, receiving a six-and-a-half-year sentence. She claimed the revolver had been delivered to her law firm hidden inside a flower pot. On the day of the killings, she and Jutta Pinzner entered the interrogation room without undergoing a thorough security check.
The lawyer stated that the Smith & Wesson had been delivered to her law firm hidden in a flower pot.
Originally published by Die Zeit in German. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.