Nostalgic Burglars
May 5, 2008
Burglars swiped a Russian hockey stick and a coal briquette with an imprint reading "25 years of GDR" from the former East German Stasi secret police headquarters, Berlin police said on Sunday, May 4. But it is highly unlikely the thieves intended on playing hockey with the items.
The thieves forced open a window of the building, which is now a museum. They snooped around several rooms, snatching "items without significant material value," the police statement said.
A wooden plank featuring a portrait of Bolshevik leader Vladimir Lenin and a white rotary dial telephone were also reported missing by museum staff. Police speculate the burglars intend to sell the articles to ostalgists -- people who feel nostalgic about life in East (Ost) Germany.
The burglars appear to have been so excited about their grabs, they somehow managed to overlook the museum's more interesting memorabilia in the museum: Stasi spy equipment, including infrared cameras, a camera hidden in a suit button, and suitcases used for hiding rifles, were untouched.