At first they had suspected the so-called klingelstreich (bell prank), a sometimes popular pastime among German youths.
Ding dong ditch, knock-a-door run, or knock-down-ginger as it is variously referred to in English, it typically involves children or youths ringing on a doorbell then running away before they are caught.
“We’d gone to bed … but we don’t tend to answer the door after 10pm, so when the bell rang, I tried to ignore it.
I thought it might be the kids from the abandoned house over the road,” Lisa, 30, a shop sales assistant told the tabloid Bild.
“But then my sister in law who lives upstairs called, and asked whether our bell was ringing, as hers wouldn’t stop.
It kept ringing even as we telephoned and despite the fact no one could be seen at the door.
Together residents and police discovered the slug traversing the door entry panel. »