The Holocaust happened eight decades ago, but the German courts are still trying to make sure that justice is served appropriately. The latest of these is a 101-year-old man who they convicted of accessory to murder for his role as a guard at one of the Nazi death camps. The judge sentenced him to five years in prison.
101-Year-Old Sentenced To Five Years In Prison For Nazi War Crimes
Neuruppin Regional Court officials in Germany are in a race against time to bring former Nazis to justice and some closure to holocaust survivors and their families. With the second world war ending almost 80 years ago, most survivors and former Nazis have passed away from old age. Still, there are a few alive, and officials are determined to see their crimes heard in court.
On Tuesday, June 28, officials sentenced the oldest man ever for his role in the Nazi death camps. The man, who was not identified, is now 101 years old. They found him guilty of an accessory to 3,518 murders while he worked as a guard at the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. (1)
The man has denied the claims since the trial began in October. Due to matters of his health, the trial has taken several months to complete. He says that he worked as an agricultural worker in a different part of the country during the war. The courts, however, have determined that this is not the truth. The defendant’s lawyer says they plan to appeal the verdict.
“The court has come to the conclusion that, contrary to what you claim, you worked in the concentration camp as a guard for about three years,” said Judge Udo Lechtermann. “You willingly supported this mass extermination with your activity,”
Likely, due to his age, the man will not actually serve time in a prison.
How Persecutors Determined Who He Was
Naturally, it is not easy finding former Nazis and it is even harder proving they are who they are. Old documentation was not the same as it is now, for starters. Then they have to find out where these people are and if they are still alive. (2)
The persecutors based their case on documents that included an SS guard that had on them this man’s name, birth date, and place of birth, among other documents. They had to hold the trial in the gymnasium near his place of residence due to mobility issues. He could only participate for about two and a half hours each day because of his age and health. They had to pause the trial many times because of health issues and hospital stays.
The Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp
The Nazis established the Sachsenhausen death camp in 1936. It was located just north of Berlin and was the first that Hitler gave the Nazis full control over. It was originally built to be a Nazi training camp and model facility. Between 1936 and 1945, the Nazis held more than 200,000 people there.
It is difficult to say exactly how many people died there. The higher end of the estimates suggests 100,000, though scholars agree that 40,000 to 50,000 is more likely to be accurate. The Nazis murdered tens of thousands of inmates using gas chambers, shootings, and hangings there. Tens of thousands more died from being a part of medical experiments, forced labor, starvation, disease, and other causes.
In many instances, the guards singled out individual prisoners to be subjected to particularly cruel treatment. By 1942, anyone at Sachsenhausen who was still alive was sent to the infamous Auschwitz death camp. The Soviets liberated the camp in 1945 and turned it into a brutal camp of their own.
Not The First Nazi Brought To Justice
The German authorities have brought several other former Nazis to justice for their crimes in the last 10 years. Ten years ago, they convicted former guard John Demjanjuk for assisting in mass murder at the camps. Last year, they convicted former guard Bruno Dey of complicity in mass murder at the same camp. In October of last year, they also convicted a woman who was a secretary at one of the camps for her role in the mass murders.
Christoffel Heijer was only six when his father was taken away and murdered at a Nazi death camp. They shot him for actively participating in the resistance. His father was one of 71 other resistance fighters shot to death there.
“Murder isn’t destiny; it’s not a crime that can be legally erased by time,” he said. (3)
Leon Schwarzenbaum is a 100-year-old survivor of Sachsenhausen. For him, as well as other survivors, the man’s refusal to admit guilt and provide evidence was very frustrating.
“(this trial was) last trial for my friends and acquaintances and my loved ones who were murdered,” he said. “For the survivors this (the man’s failure to admit guilt) is yet another rejection, just like it was in the camp. You were vermin,”
Hopefully, this conviction will bring some peace to survivors and their loved ones.
Keep Reading: Why Did Norwegian Teachers Wear Paper Clips During World War II?
Sources
- “A German court sentences 101-year-old to 5 years for role as Nazi guard.” NPR. The Associated Press. June 28, 2022
- “Germany sentences 101-year-old Nazi camp guard to 5 years in jail.” Aljazeera. June 28, 2022.
- “Nazi trial: 100-year-old SS guard in court in Germany.” BBC. October 7, 2021.