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Only the Naive. Her two compatriots were not so fortunate. Van Bennekom and Sternau are still in an East German prison. Their story was much the same as Marion's. After reaching an agreement in Amsterdam with Huivenaar, they were taken to West Berlin last April, introduced to Loeffler for final instructions, then taken to East Berlin. There, at the Hotel Sofia, they gave their passports to one of Loeffler's accomplices, who passed them on. When the two Dutch boys reported to police that their passports had been lost, they were arrested immediately, because the documents already had been used by Loeffler's clients. The two boys were sentenced to 33 months in an East German prison.
Once the two youths are released, West Berlin's prosecutor's office will go after Loeffler. Though there is something to be said for those who help refugees escape, Loeffler's passport swap is a strictly commercial venture, just as his earlier schemes were. A Berlin prosecutor estimates that he grossed $50,000 in one two-year period. Berlin police are sure that the cynical Loeffler knows precisely what will happen to his dupes, mostly naive Western youngsters, and want to put him out of business.