A Smuggler Shot

This morning, on the German border near the Kruiskapelle, on the small road leading from Bauhuis to Germany, an encounter took place between German customs officers and smugglers. A customs officer, emerging from a forest, fired several consecutive shots at a German who was fleeing by bicycle toward Holland, with the result that, when he was approximately 10 m onto Dutch territory, he collapsed with two gunshot wounds to the chest.

According to the statement of the eyewitness, shopkeeper Bauhuis, the customs officer must still have been shooting when the smuggler was already on Dutch territory. If this is the case, and the statement is very pertinent, it signifies an instance of border violation that will likely have further consequences.

The Eyewitness’s Story

When we asked Bauhuis about the circumstances of the case, he informed us of the following:

Around 7 o’clock this morning, three German smugglers headed toward the German border. Just as they were briefly on German territory, a young German customs officer emerged from a forest and attempted to detain the smugglers. Two of them fled toward Germany, one toward Holland. The latter was pursued by the customs officer.

During this pursuit, he fired about twenty shots, even when the fugitive had already arrived on Dutch territory. When he had crossed the border by approximately 10 meters, he collapsed, hit in two places on the right side of the chest by revolver bullets.

His statement was firm that shots had been fired at the smuggler who was already on Dutch territory. He was also of the opinion that the customs officer, a very young man who had presumably arrived only recently, did not know exactly where the border lay at that location.

When the man was shot, Bauhuis stated, I was under the impression that he was going to die soon, and since I would rather not have him in the house, I made him a bed of straw on German territory, where we laid him down. I should not have done that, because later the German police took custody of him and transported him to the hospital in Wesel.

This naturally complicates the investigation from the Dutch side, as it is no longer possible to determine exactly what the situation was when the man fell.

Meanwhile, a different explanation is being given from the German side. The matter is being investigated. The leadership of this is in the hands of the detachment commander of the Marechaussee here, Sergeant G. v. Buren. During the initial investigation, the acting Mayor, Alderman F.H. Somsen, was present at the scene.