Ein starkes Team returns: ZDF launches 2026 with high-stakes Berlin serial killer case

ZDF has opened the new television year with a dark and fast-moving crime story as its long-running series Ein starkes Team returns with a serial killer case set in Berlin, only weeks after the show marked its landmark 100th episode, NewsToday24 reports with reference to ZDF.

The 101st episode, Das letzte Opfer (The Last Victim), begins with the murder of a young woman, Charlotte Mauser, whose body is found on open ground. At the scene, forensic pathologist Dr. Simkeit confirms that the killing follows a recognisable pattern, immediately raising fears that a serial offender is active once again. The investigation is further complicated by the presence of Luisa Knapp, a true-crime podcaster whose persistent involvement puts additional pressure on police and risks interfering with evidence.

Jurisdiction dispute and unresolved past

Under Berlin police protocol, serial killer cases are normally handled by a special task force. This leads to an immediate clash when SOKO chief Corinna Giebelhausen asserts her authority and informs chief inspector Otto Garber that the case should be handed over. The professional conflict quickly becomes personal when it emerges that Garber and Giebelhausen once had a relationship, something Garber dismisses as “long forgotten”.

At the same time, doubts emerge within the team itself. Detective Nils Makowski challenges the assumption that the crime fits a classic serial-killer profile and pushes to continue investigating alternative leads rather than withdrawing from the case entirely.

Second death exposes copycat killer

The investigation takes a dramatic turn when a second body is discovered. A man is found dead after being run over by his own car. Police establish that the incident was staged and not an accident. What follows changes the direction of the case completely: the dead man is identified as the suspected serial killer.

For investigators, the implications are severe. Evidence shows that the man could not have murdered Charlotte Mauser, confirming that:

• the original suspect is dead,
• the first murder remains unresolved,
• a copycat killer is now operating independently.

The case shifts from identifying a known offender to stopping an unknown one.

Missing woman and mounting time pressure

As police reassess the threat, new information emerges about Antonia Kriesch, a woman reported missing and believed to have narrowly avoided becoming the next victim. Video footage places Kriesch meeting the original killer outside a local hall shortly before his murder spree began.

Investigators are now racing against time, focusing on several urgent questions:

• whether Kriesch is still alive,
• whether she is being held against her will,
• and what she may have known about the killer’s actions.

Suspicion also falls on the serial killer’s wife, whose calm and emotionally distant behaviour raises further concerns. Otto Garber captures the contradiction in a blunt assessment:
“The man is a serial killer — and she plants flowers.”

Dark crime balanced with Berlin humour

Despite its bleak subject matter, Ein starkes Team continues to rely on dry Berlin humour to balance tension. Alongside sharp exchanges about Garber’s past SOKO affair, a recurring subplot involves an abandoned ferret — named “Dr. Lüdenscheid” — that repeatedly escapes police supervision, providing brief moments of levity without undercutting the seriousness of the crimes.

Cast stability and ZDF’s scheduling strategy

The episode reinforces the core investigative trio that has carried the series beyond its anniversary milestone. Florian Martens remains the steady centre as Otto Garber, while Lucas Reiber’s Nils Makowski continues to establish himself as a modern counterweight, representing a younger generation of policing. Martens has previously described Garber as “a figure many viewers identify with”, a role that continues to resonate more than three decades into the series.

ZDF has already confirmed the next broadcast, underlining the channel’s confidence in Ein starkes Team as a cornerstone of its crime-drama schedule.

Where and when viewers can watch

The new episode is available across ZDF’s main platforms, with access structured as follows:

• Television broadcast:
  ZDF main channel
• Streaming:
  ZDF Mediathek (on-demand, limited availability)
• Next episode:
  Ein starkes Team – Mörderische Gier
  Saturday, 31 January 2026, 20:15 CET

Access to streaming content may be restricted outside Germany.

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