On 12 November 2008, the first of a two-part crossover between SOKO Leipzig and British police procedural The Bill, titled "Proof of Life", was aired, with the same version being shown on both ZDF and British television network ITV.
"SOKO" is an abbreviation of the German word Sonderkommission, which means "special investigative team".
The team, consisting of Hajo Trautzschke, Jan Maybach, Ina Zimmermann, and Tom Kowalski, mostly investigates crimes such as murder and manslaughter.
In it, the teams from Munich, Cologne, Leipzig, Stuttgart, and Wismar have to solve the murder of a police officer.
The screenplay was based on a true story related to the Viennese political activist Rudolfine Steindling.