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The Real Life Assassin Behind ‘Killing Eve’ and Other Fascinating Historical Criminal Tidbits

Khalid Elhassan October 16, 2024 34 min

Criminal - The fictional Villanelle, and Idoia Lopez Riano, the real life assassin who inspired the character — The fictional Villanelle, and Idoia Lopez Riano, the real life assassin who inspired the character. Cadena

20. From Drifter to Cult Hero

Criminal - Wilhelm Voigt's caper, as depicted in a 1956 movie — Wilhelm Voigt’s caper, as depicted in a 1956 movie. Just Dial

In preparation, Wilhelm Voigt bought components of an army captain’s uniform from second hand stores, and researched the movement of small squads of soldiers in the Berlin region. On the afternoon of October 16^th, 1906, he sprang into action. Dressed as a captain, Voigt stopped two squads of soldiers, ten men in all, near a railway station, and ordered them to follow him. He took them to Kopenick’s town hall where, barking commands and claiming to act on orders of “the highest authority“, he commandeered the place. Voigt arrested the mayor and other officials, and ordered the town treasurer to hand over all the cash in the town’s coffers – about 4000 marks. He then sent the “arrested” officials to a Berlin police station for interrogation in a car guarded by soldiers. He ordered the remaining soldiers to guard the place, left with the cash, changed into civilian clothes, and disappeared.

Wilhelm Voigt statue at the site of his caper, in front of Kopenic’s city hall. Tranio

Unfortunately, Voigt did not enjoy his loot for long. Betrayed by the jailbird to whom he had mused about using soldiers to pull off just such a crime, he was arrested, tried, convicted, and sentenced to four years. The public was amused by the brazen deceit, and Voigt was eventually pardoned by the Kaiser in 1908. Upon his release, he capitalized on his popularity, wrote a book, signed photos, performed in a play about his criminal exploit, and made appearances in amusement parks, variety shows, and restaurants. He eventually moved to Luxemoburg, where he worked as a shoemaker and waiter, and was supported by a pension from a wealthy heiress. Voigt bought a house and retired, but was financially ruined by the post-World War I economic downturn. He died and was buried in Luxembourg in 1922.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.