The YOGTZE Case: Germany's Cryptic Note and the Naked Man

The YOGTZE Case: The Note That Died With Him

October 25, 1984 – 10:55 p.m. Anzhausen, West Germany.

Günther Stoll, 34, sat quietly in his armchair, staring at the wall. His wife, Margret, knitted in the next room. Suddenly, he leapt up, eyes wild, and shouted: "Jetzt geht mir ein Licht auf!" – "Now I've got it!"

He grabbed a pen, scribbled YOGTZE (sometimes wrote as YOG'TZE) on a scrap of paper, crossed it out, and bolted from the house. Barefoot. In his pajamas. Into his light blue VW Golf. He drove into the night.

Two hours later, he was found dying in the wreckage on a remote stretch of the A45 Autobahn. Naked. Run over multiple times (multiple tire-tracks covered him). Four shadowy men allegedly in the car. And that word: YOGTZE. The case is still a mind bending riddle 41 years later.

This is still decades later one of Germany's most cryptic cold cases. Also known as the Autobahn Riddle. This is the story of Günther Stoll, a man who knew something, and paid with his life.

Günther Stoll: A Life Unraveling

Günther was a food engineer, once employed at a yogurt factory, now unemployed and living in a quiet suburb of Anzhausen, near Siegen. He was married to Margret, no children. But by 1984, Günther's world was unraveling.

For months, he'd been paranoid. He told friends and family about "those ones" – die da – shadowy figures who were following him around. Stalking him all day, every day and they were planning to kill him. He installed extra locks on the doors. Would always check under his bed before sleeping and also slept with a light on.

His wife, Margret, dismissed it as stress causing this. His doctor thought the same and prescribed Günther sedatives to try an help him. But Günther would constantly insist: "They are going to murder me."

"He was afraid of something. He kept saying 'those ones' were after him. I thought he was just tired."
– Margret Stoll, widow, 1985 interview

The Night: "Now I've Got It!"

October 25, 10:55 p.m. The house was silent. Günther suddenly jumped from his chair, rushed to the kitchen table, and scrawled YOGTZE on a shopping list. He crossed it out violently, crumpled the paper, and ran to his VW Golf.

Margret heard the engine roar. He drove south on the A45, toward Frankfurt – 100 km away. What drove him? What did YOGTZE mean? A code? A name? A license plate?

At 1:00 a.m., near Haigerseelbach (his childhood village), his car veered off the road. Crashed into a ditch. The Golf was a mangled wreck. Günther lay inside, naked, his body crushed. Multiple tire tracks over his body like he had been run over, again and again and again.

A passing trucker found him at 4:30 a.m., barely alive, gasping: "Those men... in the car... they wanted to kill me." Günther was able to explain to the trucker that four other male individuals had been in the car with him, but they had run away. The truck driver asked if they were friends of Günther he stated "No".

The Scene: A Body Too Broken to Speak

Police arrived at dawn. The VW Golf was totaled: front end crushed, roof caved in. Günther, 34, was naked from the waist down, legs shattered, torso crushed. Günther passed away en route to the hospital without saying another word.

The crumpled note? Thrown away by Margret that night, she only remembered YOGTZE six months later. No other clues. No witnesses. No "those men."

The Paranoia: Months of Fear

Günther's descent began in spring 1984. He quit his job at the yogurt factory, citing "stress." Then the whispers: "Die da... they are watching.". We're not sure whether the whispers started before Günther quit or after.

Neighbors saw him pacing at night. He called police twice about "suspicious cars." Told his sister: "One day they'll get me."

"He was normal until that summer. Then he changed. Always looking over his shoulder."
– Neighbor Frau Müller, 1985

The Investigation: A Riddle in Six Letters

Detective Hans Becker, Hagen police, led the probe.

Autopsy: Death by multiple blunt force (run over 3-5 times).

No alcohol in system.

No illegal drugs.

Pajama top on, pants missing. (possibly added in ambulance)

• No brake marks on road suggesting deliberate swerve into trees
• No other car damage reported
• No other person that had been in the car located
• YOGTZE: Code? Radio call sign (YO6TZE, Romania)? License plate? Yogurt anagram (from his job)?

The case aired on Aktenzeichen XY... ungelöst (April 12, 1985). Tips flooded in: Spy code? Industrial secret? But nothing stuck.

Theories: Accident, Murder, or Madness?

1. Suicide/Accident (Official 2025 Ruling)
Pros: Paranoia, self-swerve, no evidence of others.
Likelihood: 60%

2. Murder by "Those Men" (Stoll's Fear)
Pros: Run-over pattern, "men in car" whisper.
Likelihood: 30%

3. Hoax/Paranoid Breakdown
Pros: Note discarded, delayed recall.
Likelihood: 10%

"YOGTZE is a ghost. It means nothing – and everything."
– Investigator Hans Becker, 1985

Why It Haunts: The Word That Whispers

Closed as accident in April 2025 after re-exam. But the riddle lingers. Was YOGTZE a cry for help? A final clue? Günther died knowing something we don't.

41 years on, it echoes: What did Günther know?

Timeline: From "I've Got It" to Silence

Sources

1. Wikipedia: YOGTZE Case - Full timeline.
2. True Crime Database: Stoll's Death - 2025 closure.
3. Vocal: The Autobahn Riddle - Paranoia details.
4. Stranger Dimensions: YOGTZE Fall - Theories.
5. Medium: Unsolved YOGTZE - Cryptic note analysis.
6. Reddit: Solved After 40 Years - Community discussion.

Final Verdict

RULED ACCIDENT IN 2025 (BUT SERIOUSLY DOUBTED BY MANY). A naked man, run over 4 or 5 times, legs smashed, chest wrecked.. found INSIDE the car he apparently just crashed? A word that means nothing, or everything. YOGTZE haunts because it feels like a code we still can't crack. Then in April 2025 Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reported on the case declared it had been officially solved by the Police after 41 years. “We assume it was a traffic accident,” said police spokesman Tino Schäfer. But is it tho?