Wurst case scenario: Half-eaten sausage helps German police solve burglary but thief on run

Police fear the perpetrator may never be extradited to Germany from France

DNA on a piece of half-eaten sausage from a burglary in Gevelsburg, Germany, in 2012 was found in France, say police (Nordrhein-Westfalen Police)

German police say they have solved a cold case from 2012 after DNA found on a half-eaten piece of sausage matched that of a man detained in France for a separate crime.

Police in the town of Schwelm said the sausage belonged to the victim in a nine-year-old burglary case, and the suspect appeared to have helped himself to a bite during the break-in.

The burglary took place at a flat in Rocholzallee in Gevelsburg in March 2012.

It is not known what type of sausage the burglar had munched on, but police said it was a hard variety.

Investigators were recently alerted that French police had taken a DNA sample from a 30-year-old Albanian citizen involved in an unrelated violent crime.

The Nordrhein-Westfalen force said in a statement that back in 2012, the DNA did not produce “a direct hit”, but a recent comparison with international databases led to the link.

However, the suspect remains free and may yet escape punishment as the statute of limitations on the crime has expired. This means that in a wurst case scenario, he will likely not be extradited to Germany.