Synopsis
"A Perfect Crime" investigates the 1991 killing of politician Detlev Rohwedder, an unsolved mystery at the heart of Germany's tumultuous reunification.Monday, April 1, 1991, 11:30 pm: Detlev Karsten Rohwedder was shot through the window on the 1st floor of his villa in Düsseldorf with a sniper shot. Rohwedder was the head of the “Deutsche Treuhandanstalt”, at that time the largest company in the world. The Treuhand was responsible for the restructuring and privatization of the entire economy of the former GDR. The fatal sniper shot from 62 meters tears the country out of the dream of a non-violent and peaceful reunification. Although a letter of confession from the terrorist organisation of the Red Army Faction was found at the scene, the perpetrators have not yet been identified.
The 40-minute episodes MARTYR | CAPITALIST | OCCUOIER | VICTIM present four different perspectives on the figure of Rohwedder and thus possible motives for his murder: Was it the last spectacular murder of the Red Army Faction - their so-called 3rd generation – was the East-German secret service Stasi behind the murder or were other forces, for example Western forces at work?
The series is situated in the years 1990/91, the time immediately after the fall of the Berlin Wall, and paints the picture of a divided Germany: the radical economic cure is leading to massive unemployment in the East, the euphoria of reunification has evaporated, in many cities the Monday demonstrations flare up again and tens of thousands of people take to the streets, calls for the Kohl government to resign are louder.
The first German Netflix original documentary series offers a multi-perspective view of one of the most prominent unsolved murder cases of the German post-war period. A turbulent case and a piece of history that - as we approach the 30th anniversary of German unity - helped shape the foundation of a nation and still touches the torn soul of this nation and its people.