Naman Shrestha
Netflix’s ‘Crime Scene Berlin: Nightlife Killer’ is a German true crime docuseries that takes us back to the 2012 murder cases that haunted the city of Berlin. The authorities came across more than a couple of similar crime scenes, all of them pointing to a single man — Dirk P. He was responsible for the poisoning killing of three men, whom he chose randomly, making it all the more difficult for everyone to guess the motives behind the murders.
Dirk P Gave High Dosage of Drugs to Kill His Victims
Born and raised in the city of Saarbrücken, Germany, Dirk P grew up without his parents and most of the time, he stayed at the place of her aunt Birgit, who was ten years older than him. However, things changed drastically when Birgit’s father passed away. In order to allegedly replace her husband, Birgit’s mother insisted that Dirk sleep with her and keep her company. It was also reported that she used to sexually abuse him and take advantage of him regularly. These instances seemingly left a deep and negative impact on his psychology, despite portraying himself as a perfectly regular man.
Early on in his adulthood, Dirk realized that he was gay, a fact that he allegedly did not like. Considered friendly and courteous, he was also quite involved in the church. After gaining some experience as a nurse, he also went on to become a teacher’s assistant in an elementary school in Brandenburg, where he taught math and German. Having lived almost a decade or so with his partner, he moved to the city of Berlin as his boyfriend found a job here. Soon, in order to suppress his sexuality, he allegedly turned to some extreme measures. In April 2012, Dirk met a man named Alexander M on an online dating site and drugged him with a high dosage of GHB or liquid ecstasy. He was found dead by his mother the next morning.
Nine days later, the infamous darkroom murder took place on May 5, 2012. In the bathroom of Grosse Freiheit 114 in Berlin, the dead body of a 32-year-old man named Nicky M was found, who was also drugged by Dirk in the same way as Alexander. After 11 days, a man named Peter was found dead in his apartment in a similar fashion. Since he had experience as a nurse, Dirk was familiar with the right amount of dosage of GHB required to kill someone. However, on the night of the darkroom murder, when he failed to purchase a train ticket to Saarbrücken with Nicky’s debit card, Dirk attempted to take another victim — Miroslaw Wawak.
The killer began conversing with Miroslaw inside a train station and gave him a dose of liquid ecstasy. Fortunately, he managed to come out of it alive and tell his story of survival. Walking around in Alexander’s jacket, he was captured in the surveillance footage at the Ostbahnhof. When he was called in for questioning, Dirk, also known as the “coma killer,” was interrogated seven times and he weaved a different story each time. But when he confessed to committing the murders to the authorities, he was arrested and charged with the robbery murders.
Dirk P Died While Serving His Sentence
The prosecutors claimed Dirk was also involved in the poisoning death of his aunt. The concerned authorities looked into the matter, wherein they ordered the exhumation of her body and subsequent tests. Though the forensic reports did reveal the presence of slight traces of hazardous chemicals, the officials denied probing the investigation further as they believed doing so would result in the consumption of a significant amount of time which would further hamper the progress of an already solid case they had built against the former trainee teacher.
Dirk P’s trial for the murder of Nicky Miller, Alexander, and Peter in Berlin in 2012 commenced on February 22, 2013. It was reported that throughout the trial, he showcased no guilt for the lives he took and the families he destroyed. After about 4 months, he was sentenced to life imprisonment. The verdict also ordered the 38-year-old to spend at least 25 years behind bars. Dirk never revealed the reason he committed the crimes, but Judge Peter Schuster determined greed as his primary motivation. The judge added, “He also wanted to feel total power over others and enjoy it.”
As per Tagesspiegel, the Saarland native had been experiencing bouts of suicidal ideation since he was apprehended in May 2012. The German newspaper further reported that he had tried to take his life on several occasions, owing to which he was put under strict observation a few times. The doctors put him on medication and believed he was getting better. However, in late March 2014 — just 9 months after the court announced his sentence — Dirk P took his life in the hospital of the correctional facility, never revealing why he did what he did.
Read More: Crime Scene Berlin: Who Was Peter? How Did He Die?
