German Goes on Trial in ’62 Border Killing

BERLIN — In 1962, with the Cold War at its frostiest, a young baker risked his life to get his family out of Communist East Germany by tunneling under the newly built Berlin Wall.

In the West, he was hailed as a hero. On the other side of the wall, however, Rudolf Mueller was considered a killer because he made his getaway by shooting point-blank at a startled young border guard.

Thirty-six years later, Mueller, now 67, went on trial Monday in Berlin, charged with murder. His case is believed to be the first to reverse the pattern since German reunification in 1990 in which hundreds of former East German border guards and officials have been convicted on charges related to shooting those trying to flee to the West.

The apparent one-sidedness has prompted many in eastern Germany to complain of “victor’s justice.” Berlin officials hope the Mueller trial will help them refute that charge.

Monday’s proceedings were suspended after only 90 minutes when the defense challenged the neutrality of the judges. Another court is set to rule on the motion by Friday.

Mueller was held briefly after being charged in June 1997, then released on $60,000 bail. He no longer lives in Berlin, and he and his lawyer declined to comment before the trial.

Mueller had made it out of East Germany before the wall went up, then spent weeks digging a 72-foot tunnel to rescue his family.

On June 18, 1962, he crossed to the East to bring his family to the building near the wall where his tunnel led. As they approached, they were stopped by the guard, 20-year-old Reinhold Huhn, who was armed with a machine gun.

Mueller later told West Berlin police that Huhn asked to see their papers. Huhn was looking through a bag when, Mueller said, he punched him, knocking him down. Before Huhn could get up, another border guard opened fire, hitting the guard, Mueller claimed.

The family fled and made it to the West.

The East Germans told a different story--one that prosecutors now believe.

Citing witnesses, they say Mueller was stopped, pretended to reach for his ID card and pulled out a gun, shooting Huhn point-blank.

Mueller himself muddied the case during a celebratory post-escape news conference at one of West Germany’s biggest publishing houses, Axel Springer, which had allowed him to dig the tunnel from its basement.

With whiskey flowing, Mueller was asked how many times he had to “pull the trigger.” He was quoted as saying: “Once. The man fell down immediately.” In the jovial atmosphere, it was not clear if he was being serious.

Mueller soon left Berlin and eventually became a union official and businessman. His case slipped from memory in the West.