A 100-year-old Nazi death camp guard faced charges of complicity in mass murder at a hearing in Germany attended by a 100-year-old Holocaust survivor.
The ex-SS guard attempted to shield his face from the cameras with a folder in the make-shift courtroom in a sports hall outside Berlin.
Known only as Josef S under the German legal system, he was charged with “aiding and abetting cruel and insidious murder” of 3,518 prisoners at Sachsenhausen concentration camp, which was used to train SS guards.
Also in attendance in Brandenburg an der Havel on Thursday was Leon Schwarzbaum, a 100-year-old survivor of Auschwitz.
Chief public prosecutor Cyrill Klement stood to address the court and explained the systematic killings at Sachsenhausen between 1941 and 1945. "The defendant supported this knowingly and willingly - at least by conscientiously carrying out guard duty, which was perfectly integrated into the killing regime,” he said.
Specific charges include aiding and abetting the murder of prisoners “using the poisonous gas Zyklon B” and the “execution by firing squad of Soviet prisoners of war in 1942”, many of whom were Jewish.
The case also relates to the general killing of prisoners "through the creation and maintenance of hostile conditions.” From its establishment in 1936, until its liberation from Allied troops in 1945, Sachsenhausen concentration camp held approximately 200,000 prisoners. These included Jews, Sinti, Roma, political opponents of the Nazi regime and homosexuals.
The SS murdered around 20,000 of the prisoners in cold blood. Others lost their lives abhorrent medical experiments, or perished through forced labour, starvation and sickness.
In court chief public prosecutor Cyrill Klement waded through the disturbing details of the SS murders at Sachsenhausen. Here SS men put on doctor’s white coats, and handed out soap and towels to prisoners to trick them into thinking they were entering a room for to receive medical treatment or a shower. Instead, they were gassed to death.
Others, however, were shot via a purpose built “neck-shot device”. Between 250 and 300 prisoners were executed in this way per day, and the SS guards played loud music to drown out the sound of screams and gunshot.
The SS men painted a blue cross on prisoners’ chests if they had gold fillings. After they were shot, the precious metal was then wrenched the precious metal out and added it to the pile.
In 1943, when Josef S was at the camp, a gas chamber was installed, and the deportation of Jewish prisoners to Auschwitz began. Auschwitz survivor Leon Schwarzbaum said: “It is a very important day for me. This was an SS man. I hope he gets convicted.
“This is the last trial for my friends, acquaintances and my loved ones, who were murdered, in which the last guilty person can still be sentenced, hopefully.”
During the hearing, the judge repeatedly asked the accused if he could understand what he was being told. At first he said it was too quiet, then when using the headphones provided, he said it was too loud, before eventually saying he was content with the volume.
He then confirmed his name and date of birth, and explained that he was often called “Josi” by those close to him. He also suggested that he had Lithuanian roots. When asked by the judge if he then had German citizenship, Josef S replied: “I don’t know.”
The judge then told him that if he has a German passport then he is a German citizen, and he confirmed that he did. Given his age, the court has deemed he is only fit to stand trial for up to three hours per day. A further 21 hearings have therefore been planned, with the final one set for 7th January 2022.
Dr. Hans-Jürgen Förster told the JC: “It is true that the accused is a very old man, but so is the Auschwitz survivor who arrived today, he is also 100 years. “And, of course, there are very, very many victims who would also have liked to enjoy a full life and life to an old age, but who were not able to. Thankfully, however, there is no expiry date on justice.”
Also at court was Judith Lukocs, 62, wife of the lawyer Thomas Walter, 78, who is part of the wide prosecution team and representing several camp survivors and victims’ relatives.
Speaking to the JC she said: “My mother was also a Jew and she was even in Auschwitz with Leon Schwarzbaum, and they both survived, so this is a really big day for us all.”
When asked if Josef S would like to respond to the charges read out against him, his lawyer, Stefan Waterkamp, said his client would be making no comment at the trial on the allegations against him.
He did, however, say the defendant would speak about his “personal circumstances” at the next hearing on Friday. Dr. Efraim Zuroff, the leading Nazi hunter at the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Israel, was also at court, wearing a yarmulke.
Speaking to the JC, he said: “Today really means a lot for me, especially as someone who has been directly involved in providing information to the German authorities in cases such as these, and also as someone who knows survivors of Nazi concentration camps.
“Josef S was a member of the SS, and was at the concentration camp in Sachsenhausen, and because of his job this means was part of the wider machine of death. This was his job. It is therefore right that he should be tried for this, as should the few remaining Nazis that are still alive.”
Dr. Zuroff said he was dismayed at how long it is taking to bring these cases to trial. He said: “I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again, I’m probably the only person who prays for the good health of ex-Nazi war criminals. I want to see them all stand trial.”
Outside court, far-right campaigner Nikolai Nerling was filming a video for his YouTube channel and website. The former primary school teacher has also produced leaflets and posters which claim to educate people about an alleged "Zionist-Jewish world conspiracy". He said: “There seems to be a lot of interest in this case. I imagine the accused will be convicted but there will not be much of a sentence given.”
