Person Search for Honor Killing in Essen

Between the Rejection of Xenophobia and Real Events – A Moral Dilemma

For the Aaden Commercial Detective Agency for Essen, whose employees predominantly vote for parties to the left of the CDU, it is difficult to describe the following case, as it could contribute to further fueling the increasing xenophobic tendencies in our society. However, we have encountered cases like this and similar inquiries so frequently in the past that we would like—and to some extent must—draw attention to this issue in the following report.

Closed Police Missing Persons File Raises Concerns

A family of Turkish nationality living in Essen commissioned our investigators to locate a missing female family member, the sister of our direct contact, as the family was concerned about her well-being. The woman had suddenly disappeared without a trace just over two weeks earlier. Our detective agency in Essen* began its investigation.

 

First, we used our police contacts to verify whether a missing persons report had indeed been filed, as stated by the clients, and to determine the status of the case. While such a report did exist, the investigation had already been closed—an extremely unusual occurrence after such a short period of time. Unfortunately, the file did not indicate any reason for the termination of the investigation. However, based on previous negative experiences with searches for young Turkish women, our private detectives in Essen were already on alert at this point. There may have been unpleasant, if not dangerous, entanglements in this case that prompted the authorities to close the file. Further information could not be obtained on site, as the responsible police officer was on assignment and unavailable for several days.

Is the Missing Person Staying with Her Partner?

The clients of our detectives in Essen knew the name of a German man with whom the missing woman was allegedly in a relationship. They suspected that she might be staying at his residence. Accordingly, our detective agency used the name and the location information (Essen) to determine the current address of the suspected partner in order to continue the investigation on site.

 

Once the address was identified, a two-man detective team proceeded to the location in Essen-Rüttenscheid. The man’s name was listed on both the doorbell and the mailbox. The latter was moderately full and had not been emptied for several days—usually a bad sign in address investigations. One of our two commercial investigators from Essen rang the doorbell to check for the presence of the occupants and, in the event of a response, to present a previously prepared cover story; however, there was no reaction.

 

To avoid unnecessarily burdening the clients’ budget, one of the investigators was subsequently withdrawn from the surveillance, as the entrance could easily be monitored by a single observer. With a photo of the missing woman, the remaining investigator stayed at the address until 10:00 p.m. to observe her hoped-for return; however, the operation was unsuccessful.

Investigative Success with a Bitter Aftertaste

The following day, our detective team in Essen conducted cover interviews in the apartment building at the target address and in the surrounding neighborhood to gather new information about the two individuals. Most respondents could not identify either name; others remained uncooperative, and some deliberately feigned ignorance. However, an elderly woman fell for our chosen cover story: She told us what nice young people they were and that she should not really say anything, but since we seemed trustworthy and had good reasons, she shared the address of the parents of the suspected partner, where both individuals were reportedly staying.

 

The detectives visited the parents’ home and indeed found the missing Turkish woman there. She was extremely frightened and told us that her family was of Kurdish origin and would subject her to violence if they found her. The family did not accept her relationship with a German man, and her life was in danger because, at 22 years old, she was no longer a virgin. Our target person begged the detective team not to reveal her location to the clients, as doing so would make us complicit in a crime.

How Can the Threatened Kurdish Woman Be Protected?

The young woman’s statements shocked and frustrated our private investigators. How should this situation be handled? File a report with the police? Useless, as the authorities were apparently already aware, otherwise they would not have closed the missing persons case. Inform the family directly that the daughter had been found but refuse to disclose the address? This would, firstly, have led to disputes between contractor and client, even though we were contractually obligated to provide the address information only if the adult (!) missing person consented. Secondly, it would likely have prompted the family to commission another detective agency that might not have withheld the information.

 

Our detective agency in Essen therefore decided to deliberately provide a false lead. A meeting with the clients was arranged, to be attended by the two investigating detectives.

Threats of Violence Against Detectives

Even upon arriving at the family-run restaurant where the meeting took place, the business investigators felt uneasy, because in addition to our contact person there was an entire group of other male family members present. Given the threatening account from the escaped woman, this display was quite unsettling. The private detectives presented their story that, according to their research, the missing woman was no longer in Germany but had gone to Australia for a work-and-travel year. Unfortunately, our detective agency could not conduct investigations there, so we would have to close the case at this point (in reality, we do have good research possibilities in Australia).

 

The clients were dissatisfied, and the investigators got the impression that they at least suspected the lie, though without being certain. As our Essen private detectives were just about to announce their departure and stand up, the Kurdish men suddenly gathered in a closed circle around the table of our employees. In this threatening situation, the contact person stated that he knew where the detectives lived (which was certainly not true) and that he would hurt them very badly if they told anyone about this matter. The investigators expressed their incomprehension and asked where the sudden aggression was coming from. The contact person then revealed that the family would “of course” punish the young Kurdish woman as soon as she was found, because she had dishonored the family, was impure, and therefore deserved to die. These men had commissioned our detective agency in order to be able to commit an honor killing — and they were not the first, but they were the most frightening, because both investigators trapped among the Kurds were sweating with fear as long as they sat in that restaurant. Fortunately, they came out unharmed, but afterward they took some precautions to protect themselves and their relatives from unwanted visitors.

No acceptance of European moral and legal standards

One point that particularly shocks us in these investigations and in similar requests is the calmness and lack of concern with which representatives of this group of people speak about carrying out an honor killing. The complete absence of any awareness of wrongdoing demonstrates a lack of integration into our society, the contradiction between the value systems of many Kurds and Central Europe, and their lack of initiative to assimilate to Western norms. This is an unacceptable state of affairs that is swept under the rug by one side of the political spectrum, completely detached from reality, while the other seeks to combat it with reprehensible measures, driven in part by despicable motives and without any effort toward a consensual resolution between cultures.

*Notice*

This case dates back some time; the client family has since left Germany and the young woman is now in a safe place. For these reasons, we have decided to publish the present information today. For reasons of discretion and data protection, the locations of operations and certain personal details have been modified without altering the substance of the actual events.

 

*Note: All operations of Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Düsseldorf are coordinated by our operations management in Düsseldorf. We maintain a network of qualified, vetted investigators who can be deployed on site for you within a short time.

Aaden Detectives Düsseldorf

Münsterstraße 306

D-40470 Düsseldorf

Tel.: +49 211 9874 011-0

Fax: +49 211 9874 011-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-duesseldorf.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-duesseldorf.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824