The Peter Bergmann Case
A Flattown File Case
Arthur Kinsella, a local man, discovers a human body on the beach. At first glance it appeared as if the man had gone for a swim, drowned, and subsequently washed ashore during low tide. The man was found naked, his clothes scattered along the shore.
There was no documentation of any kind inside his clothes to confirm his identity. All the tags from his clothes, including his undergarments, had been carefully cut away with scissors.
The address Bergmann had left while checking in a local hotel turned out to be a fake.
CCTV cameras captured the stranger’s journey from the bus station of Derry from where he took a bus to Sligo in Northwest Ireland. The investigation led the police to the Sligo City Hotel, where the man registered as Peter Bergmann and gave three days of payment in advance. It was a small place, and no one asked for identification.
Video surveillance showed that Bergmann left his hotel at least 13 times with a purple filled bag. And every time he came back with an empty bag. He also paid a visit to the post office, where he purchased stamps and eight envelopes.
A post mortem examination revealed that he had advanced prostate cancer and bone tumors. He also had a long history of heart attacks.
What was inside that purple bag? Why Sligo? Why dispose of all his belongings? Why give a false name?
