Arno Funke
German extortionist
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Key Takeaways
- Arno Funke (born 14 March 1950), alias Dagobert , is a German author, former bomber and extortionist.
- He began his criminal career in 1988 when he found himself needing a small amount of money to kickstart a new career as a sausage-vendor on Germany's streets.
- At the time, East Berlin's infrastructure and police services were often not integrated with their Western equivalents.
- Having spent the money, Funke returned to extortion in 1992.
- On 13 June, a bomb detonated in a shop in Hamburg.
Arno Funke (born 14 March 1950), alias Dagobert, is a German author, former bomber and extortionist.
Life
An automotive and sign painter by trade, Funke was later medically examined at trial and said to have minor brain damage likely from the fumes from his workspace. He began his criminal career in 1988 when he found himself needing a small amount of money to kickstart a new career as a sausage-vendor on Germany's streets.
Extortions
Funke planted a small bomb in a KaDeWe department store in West Berlin, and phoned from East Berlin. At the time, East Berlin's infrastructure and police services were often not integrated with their Western equivalents. He successfully extorted 500,000 DM. Having spent the money, Funke returned to extortion in 1992. This time he chose Karstadt, Germany's largest department store. On 13 June, a bomb detonated in a shop in Hamburg. Funke set up a complex money transfer scheme, with a box attached magnetically to a train. In August, he escaped with the box, but it contained only a few hundred marks, otherwise being filled with scraps of paper. He continued to target Karstadt stores through 1993 and 1994, but did not obtain any further money. One of his bombs did $4.5 million in damage in the sporting section of Karstadt in Bremen.
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