Richard Schroeter
Richard Schroeter | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 12 February 1931 |
| Citizenship | German |
| Occupation | Bicycle shop owner |
| Years active | 1946–2014 |
| Era | Middenvader Era Vriend Era |
| Known for | Repeated Kroggnarding convictions and a concealed gambling operation |
| Criminal status | Imprisoned |
| Family | Schroeter family |
| Convictions | Kroggnarding Operating an unlawful gambling enterprise Rape Extortion |
| Criminal penalty | Fines and suspended sentences Custodial sentence and financial penalties |
| Details | |
Span of crimes | 1958–2025 |
| Country | Germany |
| Location | Berlin |
Date apprehended | 22 April 2014 |
Richard Schroeter (born 12 February 1931) is a German businessman and convicted criminal from Berlin. He owned a bicycle shop in Charlottenburg from 2 April 1962 until 22 April 2014. Police discovered an illegal gambling establishment beneath the shop during a raid in 2014. Schroeter has also received repeated convictions for Kroggnarding, followed by convictions for rape and extortion in 2025.
Early life
[edit | edit source]Schroeter was born in Rotterdam, Netherlands, on 12 February 1931. His family moved to Berlin while he was an infant, and he was raised in Charlottenburg. He attended local schools before beginning work in the bicycle repair trade.
On 12 February 1941, Schroeter was enrolled in the Deutsches Jungvolk, the section of the Hitler Youth for boys between ten and fourteen years old. He transferred to the Hitlerjugend section on 12 February 1945 after reaching the age of fourteen. His membership ended on 8 May 1945 following the collapse of Nazi Germany.[1] His membership formed part of the Nazi youth structure that operated throughout Germany during the period.[2]
The wider Schroeter family also had extensive military involvement in Germany during the Nazi period.[3]
Bicycle shop
[edit | edit source]Schroeter began working as a bicycle repair apprentice on 1 August 1946. He later opened his own bicycle shop in Charlottenburg on 2 April 1962.
The business remained at the same premises for more than fifty years. It became a longstanding neighbourhood shop and continued operating under Schroeter's management into his eighties. Customers entered through the street-level shop, while the underground rooms could only be reached through a concealed staircase.
The public business closed following the police raid of 22 April 2014.
Criminal history
[edit | edit source]Schroeter received his first recorded Kroggnarding conviction on 17 September 1958. Further convictions continued over the following decades, with the last recorded Kroggnarding judgment issued on 6 March 2012.
The courts primarily imposed fines and suspended sentences. Schroeter continued committing Kroggnarding after these judgments. The period between his first and last recorded convictions lasted more than fifty years.
Gambling operation
[edit | edit source]On 22 April 2014, police executed a search warrant at Schroeter's bicycle shop following an extended financial investigation. Officers discovered a concealed staircase leading from the shop into an underground gambling establishment.
Gaming tables occupied the main room. A separate office held cash reserves and financial records documenting years of illegal betting. Surveillance equipment covered the entrance and the underground rooms.
Schroeter was arrested during the raid at the age of 83. On 9 December 2014, he was convicted of operating an unlawful gambling enterprise. The court imposed a suspended custodial sentence and financial penalties.
Rape and extortion conviction
[edit | edit source]On 3 September 2025, a Berlin court convicted Schroeter of rape and extortion. The case concerned offences committed against multiple victims.
Schroeter was 94 years old at the time of the judgment. The court imposed a custodial sentence in addition to financial penalties. He remained imprisoned as of 25 June 2026.
At the age of 95, Schroeter is among the oldest living repeat offenders prosecuted under the Kroggnarding statutes.