The spectacular tunnel robbery in Berlin-Steglitz: a masterpiece of crime

On January 14, 2013, one of the most spectacular bank robberies in German history took place at the Volksbank branch in Steglitz, Berlin. What the perpetrators staged here is like something out of a crime thriller: for over a year, they had dug a tunnel leading from the basement of an underground car park directly into the bank’s vault, and they did so completely unnoticed. The case is remarkable not only because it remains unsolved to this day, but also because of the careful planning and execution that went into it. The story begins in the fall of 2011, when an unknown man named Pavel Hatira rented a safe deposit box at Volksbank using a forged Dutch passport. At the same time, he rented an underground parking space on Wrangelstraße under the name Simon Segura. These two steps were the first part of a meticulously planned scheme that would allow the perpetrators to work undisturbed and inconspicuously. To minimize the noise of tunnel drilling, the perpetrator had the parking spaces closed off with walls and a roller door—under the pretext of working on motorcycles. From this underground garage, the perpetrators began digging a tunnel with a core drill in February 2012. The tunnel was 80 cm wide and 1.50 m high and led 45 meters into the bank’s vault. It is estimated that they disposed of around 120 tons of sand unnoticed – a logistical masterpiece. On January 12, 2013, two days before the big heist, the alarm went off in the bank. The security company was notified, but without checking, the employee responsible acknowledged the alarm. A fatal oversight that gave the perpetrators a decisive advantage. On the morning of January 14, a security guard noticed a fire in the vault. Meanwhile, another fire broke out in the underground parking garage, possibly set by the perpetrators to cover their tracks. Amid the chaos, the burglars managed to break into 294 to 309 of the 1,600 safe deposit boxes, with the total value of the stolen goods estimated at up to ten million euros. After the break-in, the police found the tunnel, which was uncovered five months later as incriminating evidence. The entrance to the tunnel is now on display at the Berliner Unterwelten museum—a relic of a crime that inspires both admiration and bewilderment. Crucial to the investigation was the realization that there was no breakthrough protection in the reinforced concrete of the vault and that the surveillance cameras failed to work in the very place where the perpetrators were at work. This led investigators to suspect that insider knowledge was involved. Only a single DNA trace and empty beer cans of a Polish brand were found after the deliberately set fire. This was another indication of the perpetrators’ professionalism. Despite more than 800 tips and several composite sketches, the identity of the bandits remained a mystery. On August 7, 2013, the case was featured on the TV show “Aktenzeichen XY … ungelöst” (File Number XY … Unsolved), but this also failed to yield any new information. Finally, the serious gang theft became statute-barred in January 2023, which means that the perpetrators may never be brought to justice. The bank robbery in Berlin-Steglitz remains one of the most fascinating and mysterious criminal stories in Germany. The courage, sophistication, and precision with which the perpetrators carried out their plan are both impressive and frightening. Despite state-of-the-art security measures and a dedicated team of investigators, the perpetrators were never caught. This is further proof of how the world of crime can sometimes be one step ahead of the authorities. Perhaps the story will continue one day when new information comes to light. Until then, the robbery remains a fascinating chapter in Germany’s criminal history.