Overview
- On January 26–27, investigators searched multiple houses and apartments in Düsseldorf and secured potential evidence in the 1996 disappearance of eight-year-old Deborah “Debbie” Sassen.
- Operations focused on the Wersten district near her school route, where teams used ground-search devices and conducted targeted digging, including at a soakaway pit, without locating the missing girl.
- The homicide squad was supported on site by specialists from the Federal Criminal Police Office, and the collected materials are undergoing forensic evaluation.
- The investigating prosecutor declined to say whether the latest searches followed tips received after last year’s public appeal.
- BILD reported a new suspect with access to the searched properties in 1996, a claim not confirmed by officials, and police continue to request information via Kriminalkommissariat 11 at 0211 870 0.