Editing Fritz Haarmann (section)

==Victims==
The true tally of Haarmann's victims will never be known. Following his arrest, Haarmann made several imprecise statements regarding both the actual number of his victims he killed, and when he began killing. Initially, Haarmann claimed to have killed "maybe thirty, maybe forty" victims;<ref name="ReferenceL"/><ref name="ReferenceC"/> later, he would claim the true number of victims he had killed was between fifty and seventy.{{refn|group=n|Although Haarmann was charged with twenty-seven murders, by the second week of his trial, he had confessed to having committed three further murders for which he had not been formally charged.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1893&dat=19241215&id=_ycrAAAAIBAJ&pg=5092,708824|title=Slayer of 30 Near Collapse at his Trial|access-date=13 December 2017|newspaper=The Southeast Missourian|date=15 December 1924}}</ref>}}

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year!! No.!! Date!! Name!! Age!! Context!! Conviction
|-
| 1918|| Suspected || September || Hermann Koch || 14 ||Koch was a 14-year-old youth who disappeared just weeks prior to Haarmann's first confirmed victim, Friedel Rothe. Haarmann is known to have kept company with Koch. He is also known to have written a letter to Koch's school providing an explanation for the youth's prolonged absence.<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 101"/> || Not charged
|-
| 1918|| 1 || 25 September || Friedel Rothe || 17|| Encountered Haarmann in a café, having run away from home. Haarmann claimed to have buried Rothe in Stöckener cemetery. || Yes
|-
| 1922|| Suspected|| 17 March || Hans Keimes || 17 || Haarmann is strongly suspected of the murder of Hans Keimes, a Hanover youth who was reported missing on 17 March 1922.<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 101"/> Keimes's nude, [[binding (knot)|bound]] body was found in a canal on 6 May.<ref name="ReferenceH">Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} p. 48</ref> A distinctive handkerchief bearing Grans' name was also found lodged in Keimes's throat.<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 101"/> || Not charged
|-
| 1923|| 2|| 12 February || Fritz Franke || 17|| Franke was a pianist, originally from Berlin. He encountered Haarmann in the Hanover station waiting rooms. All of Franke's personal possessions were given to Grans. || Yes
|-
| 1923|| 3|| 20 March || Wilhelm Schulze|| 17|| An apprentice writer who last informed his best friend he intended to run away from home. Schulze's clothing was found in the possession of Haarmann's landlady. Haarmann formally identified Schulze's possessions at his trial.<ref>{{cite news|title=Fiend in Human Form: Amazing Confessions by Mass Murderer|date=31 January 1925 |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/76438969 |access-date=31 January 2019|work=The Mirror}}</ref>|| Yes
|-
| 1923|| 4|| 23 May|| Roland Huch|| 16|| Huch vanished from Hanover station after running away from home. Items of his clothing were traced to a lifeguard who later testified at Haarmann's trial that he obtained these items from Haarmann.<ref>Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} pp. 86–87</ref>|| Yes
|-
| 1923|| 5|| [[Wiktionary:circa|c]]. 31 May|| Hans Sonnenfeld|| 19|| A runaway from the suburb of Limmer who is known to have associated with acquaintances at Hanover station. Sonnenfeld's coat and tie were found at Haarmann's apartment.<ref>Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} p. 87</ref>|| Yes
|-
| 1923|| 6|| 25 June|| Ernst Ehrenberg|| 13|| The first known victim killed at Haarmann's Rote Reihe address. Ehrenberg was the son of Haarmann's neighbour. He never returned home after running an errand for his parents.|| Yes
|-
| 1923|| 7|| 24 August|| Heinrich Struß|| 18|| A carpenter's son from the suburb of [[Egestorf]]. Struß was last seen at a Hanover cinema. Haarmann was in possession of the youth's violin case when arrested.|| Yes
|-
| 1923|| 8|| 24 September|| Paul Bronischewski|| 17|| Vanished as he travelled home to the city of Bochum after visiting his uncle in [[Groß Garz]]. He was offered work by Haarmann when he alighted the train at Hanover.|| Yes
|-
| 1923|| 9|| c. 30 September|| Richard Gräf|| 17|| Disappeared after informing his family a detective from Hanover had found him a job. Haarmann's landlady is known to have [[Pawnbroker|pawned]] Gräf's overcoat.<ref>Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} p. 92</ref>|| Yes
|-
| 1923|| 10|| 12 October|| Wilhelm Erdner|| 16|| A locksmith's son from the town of Gehrden. Erdner disappeared as he cycled to work. Haarmann is known to have sold Erdner's bicycle on 20 October.|| Yes
|-
| 1923|| 11|| 24 October|| Hermann Wolf|| 15|| Wolf was last seen by his brother in the vicinity of Hanover station; his belt buckle was later found in Haarmann's apartment,<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 94">Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} p. 94</ref> although Haarmann would deny having killed Wolf at his trial. Haarmann was acquitted of this murder.|| No
|-
|1923 || 12|| 27 October|| Heinz Brinkmann|| 13|| Vanished from Hanover station after missing his train home to Clausthal. A witness would later testify to having seen Haarmann and Grans conversing with Brinkmann in the waiting rooms at Hanover station.<ref>Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} p. 95</ref>|| Yes
|-
| 1923|| 13|| 10 November|| Adolf Hannappel|| 17|| One of the few murder victims whom Haarmann readily confessed to killing.<ref>Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} p. 97</ref> Hannappel was seen by several witnesses sitting in the waiting rooms at Hanover station—all of whom would later testify to having seen Haarmann approach Hannappel. Haarmann would himself claim to have committed this murder upon the urging of Hans Grans.|| Yes
|-
| 1923|| 14|| 6 December|| Adolf Hennies|| 19|| Hennies disappeared while looking for work in Hanover; his coat was found in the possession of Hans Grans. Haarmann would claim at his trial that, although he dismembered Hennies's body, Grans and another acquaintance were responsible for this murder.<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 99"/> Haarmann was acquitted of this murder.|| No
|-
| 1924|| 15|| 5 January|| Ernst Spiecker|| 17|| Last seen by his mother on his way to appear as a witness at a trial. Grans was wearing Spiecker's shirt at the time of his arrest.|| Yes
|-
| 1924|| 16|| 15 January|| Heinrich Koch|| 20|| Although Haarmann claimed to be unable to recognize a photo of Koch, the youth was known to be an acquaintance of his. Koch's clothing and personal possessions were given to the son of Haarmann's landlady.|| Yes
|-
|1924 || 17|| 2 February|| Willi Senger|| 19|| Senger had known Haarmann prior to his murder. Although Haarmann initially denied any involvement in the youth's disappearance, police established that Haarmann regularly wore Senger's coat after the youth had vanished.|| Yes
|-
| 1924|| 18|| 8 February|| Hermann Speichert|| 16|| An apprentice electrician from Linden-Limmer. Speichert's clothing is known to have been sold by the son of Haarmann's landlady; his [[geometry]] kit was given to Grans as a gift.|| Yes
|-
| 1924|| 19||c. 1 April || Hermann Bock|| 22|| Bock was a labourer from the town of [[Uelzen]], who had known Haarmann since 1921. He was last seen by his friends walking towards Haarmann's apartment. Although Haarmann was wearing Bock's suit when arrested, he was acquitted of this murder.|| No
|-
| 1924|| 20|| 8 April|| Alfred Hogrefe|| 16|| Ran away from home on 2 April following a family argument. He was repeatedly seen in the company of Haarmann at Hanover station in the days prior to his murder. All of Hogrefe's clothes were traced to Haarmann, Grans, or Haarmann's landlady.<ref>Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} p. 107</ref>|| Yes
|-
| 1924|| 21|| 17 April || Wilhelm Apel|| 16|| Disappeared on his way to work; Apel was lured from the Hanover-Leinhausen station to Haarmann's apartment. Much of his clothing was later sold by Haarmann's landlady.|| Yes
|-
| 1924|| 22|| 26 April|| Robert Witzel|| 18|| Last seen visiting a travelling circus; Witzel's skull was found on 20 May. The remainder of his body was thrown into the Leine River.|| Yes
|-
| 1924|| 23|| 9 May|| Heinz Martin|| 14|| An apprentice locksmith from the city of [[Chemnitz]]. His leather marine cap, shirt, and cardigan were all found in Haarmann's apartment. It is speculated that Martin disappeared from Hanover station while looking for work.<ref>Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} p. 114</ref>|| Yes
|-
| 1924|| 24|| 26 May|| Fritz Wittig|| 17|| A travelling salesman from the town of Kassel. According to Haarmann, he had not wanted to kill Wittig but was persuaded to "take the boy" by Grans, who coveted Wittig's suit.|| Yes
|-
| 1924|| 25|| 26 May || Friedrich Abeling|| 10|| The youngest victim. Abeling disappeared while playing truant from school. His skull was found in the Leine River on 13 June.|| Yes
|-
| 1924|| 26|| 5 June|| Friedrich Koch|| 16|| Vanished on his way to college. Koch was last seen by two acquaintances in the company of Haarmann.<ref>Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} p. 122</ref>|| Yes
|-
| 1924|| 27|| 14 June|| Erich de Vries|| 17|| De Vries disappeared after informing his parents he intended to go for a swim in the [[Ohe (Sagter Ems)|Ohe River]]. Following his arrest, Haarmann led police to de Vries's dismembered skeletal remains, which he had discarded in a lake located at the entrance to the Herrenhausen Gardens.<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 65"/>
|| Yes
|-
|}

'''Footnotes'''
[[File:2016-12-23 Sprengel Museum Hannover Haarmann-Fries.jpg|right|thumb|A bronze memorial depicting the crimes of Fritz Haarmann. This memorial is on display at Hanover's [[Sprengel Museum]].]]
Haarmann was acquitted of three murders at his trial: those of Adolf Hennies, Hermann Wolf, and Hermann Bock. In each instance, strong [[circumstantial evidence]] existed attesting to his guilt.<ref name="ReferenceM">Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} pp. 99–100</ref>

In the case of Hermann Wolf, police established that prior to the youth's disappearance, he had informed his father he had conversed with a detective at Hanover station. Haarmann is known to have given many of Wolf's clothes to his landlady in the days immediately following his 44th birthday (shortly after Wolf was reported missing).<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 94"/> Moreover, the youth's distinctive belt buckle was found at Haarmann's Rote Reihe address. Haarmann only chose to deny this murder midway through his trial, following heated threats made against him by the father of the murdered youth.<ref>Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} pp. 94–95</ref>

Haarmann was acquitted of the murder of Adolf Hennies due to conflicting testimony regarding the circumstances as to whether he or Grans actually murdered the youth. Although Haarmann admitted at his trial to having dismembered Hennies's body, he claimed to have returned to his apartment and "found a dead body lying there," to which, he claimed, Grans simply replied, "One of yours." Grans would deny this claim, and would state that he had bought Hennies's distinctive coat from Haarmann for eight [[German Papiermark|Marks]], after having been warned the coat was stolen. Due to this conflicting testimony, and the lack of an actual witness to the murder, neither Haarmann nor Grans were convicted of Hennies's murder.<ref name="ReferenceM"/>

In the case of Hermann Bock, several friends of his testified at Haarmann's trial that, prior to Haarmann's arrest, they were actively dissuaded from filing a missing person report with police; these witnesses testified that Haarmann was insistent on filing the report himself (he had never done so). Other witnesses testified to having acquired various personal possessions belonging to the youth from Haarmann. In addition, a tailor testified at Haarmann's trial to having been asked by Haarmann to alter the suit. Haarmann repeatedly contradicted himself regarding his claims as to how he acquired the youth's possessions. It is likely that Haarmann chose to deny this murder due to evidence suggesting the murder had been premeditated, as opposed to being committed in the throes of passion. He had known the youth for several years prior to his murder, and Bock was known to be heterosexual. Due to his denial of having committed this particular murder, Haarmann was acquitted.<ref>Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} p. 111</ref>

===Suspected victims===
===Hermann Koch===
In September 1918,<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 37"/> Haarmann is believed to have killed a 14-year-old named Hermann Koch, a youth who disappeared just weeks prior to his first confirmed victim, Friedel Rothe. Haarmann is known to have kept company with Koch. He is also known to have written a letter to Koch's school providing an explanation for the youth's prolonged absence.<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 101">Monsters of Weimar {{ISBN|1-897743-10-6}} p. 101</ref> As had been the case in the disappearance of Friedel Rothe, police had searched Haarmann's Cellerstraße apartment in search of the youth, although no trace of Koch was found and charges against Haarmann in relation to the disappearance were dropped. Koch's father had petitioned in 1921 for Haarmann to be tried for his son's murder however his requests were officially rejected.<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 101"/>

===Hans Keimes===
Haarmann is also strongly suspected of the murder of Hans Keimes, a 17-year-old Hanover youth who was reported missing on 17 March 1922<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 101"/> and whose nude, [[binding (knot)|bound]] body was found in a canal on 6 May. The cause of death was listed as strangulation, and the body bore no signs of mutilation. A distinctive handkerchief bearing Grans' name was found lodged in Keimes's throat.<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 101"/>

Prior to the discovery of Keimes's body, Haarmann is known to have both visited the youth's parents offering to locate their son and to have immediately thereafter informed police that he believed Grans was responsible for Keimes's disappearance. However, Hans Grans is known to have been in custody at the time of the disappearance of Keimes.<ref name="ReferenceE"/>

Two weeks before the disappearance of Keimes, Haarmann had returned to his Neue Straße apartment, having served six months in a labour camp for several acts of theft he committed in August 1921. Upon his return, Haarmann discovered that Grans had stolen much of his personal property and fraudulently obtained and spent his military pension while he had been incarcerated. This resulted in a violent argument between the two men culminating in Haarmann evicting Grans. Shortly thereafter, Grans and a criminal acquaintance named Hugo Wittkowski returned and further ransacked the apartment. Haarmann likely murdered Keimes in an attempt to [[Frameup|frame]] Grans in reprisal for the theft of his property and pension.<ref name="ReferenceH"/>

Haarmann was not tried for the murder of either Koch or Keimes. Officially, both cases remain unsolved.<ref name="Monsters of Weimar p. 101"/>