By Michael Behrendt and Timo Beurich
Unbelievable family drama on the outskirts of Berlin. A mother (35) killed her 2-year-old son and then herself. The boy was dead in the bicycle trailer.
On Sunday, at 3:30 p.m., a walker (57) discovered the trailer with the boy’s body on the country road between the communities of Diedersdorf and Großbeeren (Teltow-Fläming).
According to initial findings, the child was suffocated. A short time later, the police found the mother nearby. She had hanged herself from a tree.
The possible motive for the act is completely unclear. The family lives in Berlin-Buckow. On September 8th, the boy’s father (37) took his 6-year-old daughter to the nearby school and then returned home.
While his wife Anna (35) was in the kitchen with their son Aleksandr, the father went to sleep again. When he woke up an hour and a half later, the two were gone.
He informed the police. But there was no evidence of a planned suicide, no signs of a mental disorder, and there had been no argument. Then, on September 10, the official missing person report was filed with the Berlin police. But by then it was already too late.
When the Russian-born father found out about the death of his wife and son from the police on Sunday, he collapsed. He is receiving medical attention.
As the BZ learned from security circles, there is no evidence of the involvement of a third person.
Reporting on suicide
As a rule, BZ does not report on suicides so as not to provide an incentive for imitation – unless suicides receive special attention due to the circumstances.
If you or someone close to you is affected by depression, please contact the telephone pastoral care: ☎ 0800 111 0 111. The Berlin Crisis Service provides free help at nine Berlin locations – 24 hours a day, anonymously if desired: www.berliner- Krisendienst.de