"ZERV" tells of the first years after the fall of the Wall, the breaks in life courses, of completely different biographies and of the successful encounter in the common fight against crime, which knows neither East nor West. ZERV stands for "Zentrale Ermittlungsstelle für Regierungs- und Vereinigungskriminalität", the Central Investigation Agency for Government and Association Crime, which was founded in Berlin in 1991 by decision of the federal government. Karo Schubert fought for a position as chief inspector in reunified Germany. When she investigates the murder of a high-ranking employee of the Ministry of Disarmament, she meets Peter Simon, the newly appointed Western Commissioner from the special unit ZERV for the first time. They are forced to investigate together - because both claim the murder case for their department. But the various tasks of the ZERV can only be solved for Peter Simon and his team in cooperation with the Eastern colleagues.