Michael Oskar Newrzella (September 15, 1967 – June 27, 1993) was a German police officer and member of

GSG 9 , formerly , is the police tactical unit of the German Federal Police (Bundespolizei). The unit is responsible for combatting terrorism and violent crime, including organized crime. In addition to its headquarters location in Sankt Augustin-H ...

, the

counter-terrorism Counterterrorism (alternatively spelled: counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, relates to the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, businesses, and intelligence agencies use to co ...

and

special operations Special operations or special ops are military activities conducted, according to NATO, by "specially designated, organized, selected, trained, and equipped forces using unconventional techniques and modes of employment." Special operations ma ...

unit of the German Federal Police, who was killed by the

Red Army Faction The Red Army Faction (, ; RAF ),See the section "Name" also known as the Baader–Meinhof Group or Baader–Meinhof Gang ( ), was a West German far-left militant group founded in 1970 and active until 1998, considered a terrorist organisat ...

. Newrzella participated in a joint operation by the Federal Criminal Police Office and the Federal Border Police to arrest Red Army Faction members Wolfgang Grams and Birgit Hogefeld at the train station in Bad Kleinen. Grams managed to shoot at the two officers attempting to arrest him, missing the other officer but hitting Newrzella, severely wounding him and he died a few hours later. Reportedly, after Newrzella had been shot, Grams then attempted to commit

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

by shooting himself, surviving but dying later that day in hospital. Shortly after the Bad Kleinen operation, there were allegations that Grams had not shot himself but was

executed Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence (law), sentence ordering that an offender b ...

by a police officer that shot him in the head from close distance. The Staatsanwaltschaft

Schwerin Schwerin (; Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch dialect, Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch Low German: ''Swerin''; Polabian language, Polabian: ''Zwierzyn''; Latin: ''Suerina'', ''Suerinum'') is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Germ ...

investigated these allegations and concluded in January 1994 that they were incorrect. Grams' parents challenged this conclusion in court, but it was upheld by five different courts, including the

European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The court hears applications alleging that a co ...

in 1999.

References

External links

* GSG 9 Action in Bad Kleinen (German Wikipedia)
Unofficial memorial page
(www.odmp.info) 1967 births 1993 deaths People from North Rhine-Westphalia Deaths by firearm in Germany Victims of the Red Army Faction German police officers killed in the line of duty {{Germany-bio-stub