Peggy Knobloch

The Sudden Disappearance

Peggy Knobloch was an ordinary 9-year-old German girl who lived in Fürth, a mid-sized town approximately 20 kilometers north of Nuremberg in Bavaria. On July 31, 1996, she vanished without trace from her everyday life — a disappearance that would become one of Germany's most troubling and long-running cold cases.

The girl was sent out to play, as she did daily, but never returned home. Her parents reported her missing, and an extensive search was launched. Police combed the area, worked with search dogs, and made public appeals to the population. Despite all efforts, nothing was found of Peggy — no trace, no clue, nothing that could explain what had happened.

Years passed without a breakthrough. The case went cold. Peggy Knobloch became one of Germany's longest-missing children — a nameless face on missing person posters that aged with each passing year.

Carsten Ansorge and Early Suspicions

Carsten Ansorge was known in the area around Fürth. He had previously been suspected in another context and had contact with children through his work. Police suspected him in connection with Peggy's disappearance, but without evidence or witness statements, there was not enough to prosecute him.

Although Ansorge may have been under suspicion at some point, he was never formally charged or convicted in connection with Peggy's disappearance. He thus walked around as an unconfirmed — and unpunished — suspect for nearly three decades.

The case was treated as a missing child case over the years, but without new witness statements or technological breakthroughs, it appeared practically unsolvable.