Police sealed off a junction near Berlin’s Checkpoint Charlie after they were alerted that a man had fired shots in an apparent robbery attempt
BERLIN — Police sealed off a junction near Berlin’s Checkpoint Charlie after they were alerted that a man had fired shots in an apparent robbery attempt on Monday, but later said that there was no robbery and they found a cartridge casing from a gun used to fire blank shots.
The police operation centered on a cafe a block from the famous former border crossing between East and West Berlin, a popular tourist spot. A subway station next to the scene was closed.
Police initially said that a man apparently tried to rob the cafe and fired shots before fleeing.
But they later said that, after questioning further witnesses and examining the whole building, they had been unable to confirm the reported shots. They also said there had been no robbery.
They said after searching the area that they also had garnered no further leads on a possible suspect. But they did find the casing from a cartridge that appeared to come from a starting pistol.
