Bestselling German novelist found killed on Hamburg houseboat

Police launch murder inquiry after Alexandra Fröhlich is found dead on her boat on the Elbe

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/apr/27/alexandra-frohlich-bestselling-german-novelist-murder-inquiry-hamburg



A murder inquiry has been launched after a bestselling German novelist was found dead on a houseboat in Hamburg having been violently attacked, police have said.

Alexandra Fröhlich, 58, whose novels have had prominence on Germany’s bestseller lists, was found on Tuesday morning, investigating authorities said.

The case was quickly passed to the murder squad amid evidence she had been attacked. Authorities have refused to give more details other than saying forensic evidence had been gathered and a coroner’s report submitted.

According to the local broadcaster NDR, citing police sources, Fröhlich was shot. Investigators have issued an appeal for potential witnesses who may have observed suspicious activity on or around the long cerise houseboat in which Fröhlich resided, on the Holzhafen bank of the Elbe River in the eastern Moorfleet district.

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