Kriti Mehrotra
As a documentary film that lives up to its title in every way imaginable, Netflix’s ‘Big Mäck: Gangsters and Gold’ can only be described as equal parts gripping, bewildering, as well as haunting. That’s because it features exclusive interviews with not just Big Mäck himself (Donald Stellwag) but also those close to him to really shine a light upon his unimaginably unique life experiences. Amongst them was thus his fellow inmate-turned-friend Falk Simang — so now, if you simply wish to learn more about him, his background, and his current standing, we’ve got the details for you.
Who is Falk Simang?
It was back in the 1990s when Dresden, Germany, native Falk first came across Donald while they were both incarcerated at Straubing Correctional Facility and essentially stuck in the sick ward. The truth is the latter was there after having been falsely convicted of a 1992 bank robbery, whereas the former had been found guilty of “quote-unquote murder during the Yugoslavian Wars.” “Some of those I had fought didn’t like this at all,” the trained roofer, bricklayer, and mercenary said in the original. “As a result, I was bothered a lot from all sides, so I had to go to the sick ward.”
That’s where Falk met Donald, only to quickly learn the tall, broad, obese male was genuinely ill (suffering from pituitary tumors since the 1980s), leading to them developing a very close bond. “When you spend 24 hours a day in your cell, of course, you start talking,” the former stated before contradicting his friend’s isolation claim by adding, “It was a good match. We became real friends.” In fact, the mercenary was the one to give Donald his nickname of Big Mäck owing to not just his size but also his conduct; “He was a legend in Straubing. They won’t have another like him.”
Since Falk had military training and was deeply knowledgeable on how to go about recruiting people for different jobs, Donald reportedly utilized him to establish certain structures behind bars. Though most of these were merely to obtain contraband like bank notes, magazines, books, cigarettes, food (meats), and drinks to ensure their sentence in prison was nothing short of luxurious. “Should I say we lived in prison like God in France,” the then-wrongly accused, now gold heist-implicated felon himself said in the Netflix production. “…It was like in [the movie] ‘Goodfellas.”
As if that’s not enough, Falk added he could also cook for them as there was a tiny kitchen in the sick ward — they hence always had a choice on whether to consume the in-house meals or not. In fact, he asserted they had everything the correctional facility as well as its inmates had to offer owing to the sheer presence of Big Mäck, and it went way beyond food, favors, fun, and television. “Big Mäck was the man; he could do anything,” he said at one point. “Believe me… Women are a dime a dozen, but real, true friends, are something you rarely find. Donald was a lucky find for me.”
Where is Falk Simang Now?
Considering everything Falk and Donald went through together, it’s honestly no surprise they are still close friends in every sense of the term — they support one another through it all. They did apparently lose touch for a while following their respective release as well as reintegration into society, yet now that they have rekindled their bond, they’re determined never to let go again.
As for Falk’s individual standing, from what we can tell through his online presence, the Dresden native currently resides in Hatzenport, Germany, where he serves at a craft business for electrical installations. He even seems to be in a happy, healthy, stable, relatively long-term relationship at the moment, but he prefers to keep the details regarding the same well away from prying public eyes.
Read More: What is Big Mäck AKA Donald Stellwag’s Net Worth?
