Berlin Fires Checkpoint Charlie ‘Guards’ for Extorting Money From Tourists

BERLIN (Sputnik) - Berlin authorities have banned actors posing as US soldiers from the site of the iconic Checkpoint Charlie that was a border crossing between the East and West occupation zones, media said.

The checkpoint was used by the Allied military to cross into East Berlin up until the Berlin Wall fell in 1989. The white hut was closed and moved to a museum in 1990 and a replica was erected in the 2000s.

For almost two decades, reenactors from a German theatre company have posed with tourists, handed out fake border stamps and sold souvenir visas, according to the Bild newspaper.

But city authorities have found that actors were not always happy with the voluntary donations they were given and demanded more tips. They reportedly earned up to $5,500 on a good day.