One further result of the shooting was an excuse for the East German police to have a general checking of everyones identification papers. Here again we tried our best to delude them. but were unsuccessful this time. This time they looked at my passport and determined that my residence permit was overdue. The police officer who checked looked at the wrong page in my passport. however. and took my food stamps to be the extensions of my visa. They were under the impression that I was West German. and therefore did not arrest me. They merely advised me to get the matter straightened out at Oranienburg. the police station.