Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

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Dr Eisvogel
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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#241

Post by Dr Eisvogel » 28 Sep 2012, 10:43

ansata1976 wrote:Executed in Yugoslavia:
Popp Philipp (20.03.1893 in Beschania - 30.6.1945 in Zagreb), Bischof
The Evangelical [Lutheran] Bishop in Croatia, Dr. Phillip Popp was sentenced to death by shooting [by firing squad] on the June 29th 1945 by the Military Court of the Command of the City of Zagreb (Vojni sud Komande grada Zagreba).

The members of the Court were:
1.) Vlado Ranogajec, captain and president of the Court
2.) Ljubodrag Rapaić, major
3.) Jovan Borovac, soldier
and
4.) Dr. Oto Radan, clerk

Dr. Zdenko Popović, court investigator represened the persecution


The sentence was to be effective after approval by the Military Court of the 2nd Yugoslav Army.

Dr. Phillip Popp was the 11th out of 58 accused.

The transcript of the sentence was published in Partizanska i komunistička represija i zločini u Hrvatskoj 1944.-1946. Dokumenti. Knjiga 3: Zagreb i Središnja Hrvatska. Slavonski Brod-Zagreb, 2008, pp. 458-477

However, the sentence published in the book is itself a copy issued in Zagreb on December 22nd 1945 by Commission for determining Crimes of the Occupiers and their Collaborators (Zemaljska Komisija za utvrdjivanje zločina okupatora i njihovih pomagača) as faithful to the original and bears the Commission stamp.

The copy of the sentence is located in Croatian State Archives => HDA, Zagreb, fund 306, GUZ, 4984/45, box 70

His biographic data from the sentence (p. 459):
11/ Okrivljeni POPP FILIP, sin pok. Matije, rodj. 23.III.1893. u Bežaniji kraj Zemuna, Jugos. državljanin, svršio teološki i filozofski i pravni fakultet, evangelički biskup u Zagrebu, posjeduje imovine, navodno neosudjivan.
Translation:
11/ Accused POPP FILIP [Phillip], son of late Matija [Matthias], born on March 23rd 1893 in Bežanija near Zemun [Beschania bei Semlin], citizen of Yugoslavia, graduated from Faculty of Theology, Faculty of Philosophy and Faculty of Law, Evangelical Bishop in Zagreb, owns property, allegedly never sentenced.

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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#242

Post by Dr Eisvogel » 28 Sep 2012, 12:53

ansata1976 wrote:Dr Georg Spiller
08.04.1900 in Zagreb
executed dezember 1948
studied law, then police in Yugoslavia
Croatian with German ancestors
He was extradited in 1947 from Austria to Yugoslavia and in December 1948 sentenced to death and executed.

I need more information about him
All the information are derived from a Yugoslav Communist propaganda book published in 1987 in Zagreb and written by Branislav Božović in Serbian language.

The link to the book: http://www.znaci.net/00001/281.pdf The relevant part is pp. 210-294
On the p. 248 there are two photos of Spiller.

Dr Georg Spiller was the chief of Yugoslav police in the city of Novi Sad at the moment of April War in 1941. He was supposed to be shot (executed) by Hungarians on April 14th 1941, but he was just wounded and pretended to be dead. He was saved by the Volksdeutschers in Novi Sad, led to hospital and given shelter in Kulturbund HQ in Novi Sad.

As Yugoslavia disappeared, NDH (Independent State of Croatia) authorities requested the Hungarians for extradition of Spiller, because on his previous police post in Zagreb he was persecuting Ustashe activists.

He requested from Dr Trišler (Dr Josef Trischler, deputy from Bačka Palanka in National Assembly of Kingdom of Yugoslavia) head of Kulturbund in Novi Sad an ID, so Spiller could claim German identity before Hungarians, which would prevent his extradition to Croatia. So from Juraj Špiler, a Croat he became Georg Spiller, a German.

Josef Trischler and Johann Wuescht saved him from extradition by intervening with Hungarians.

Juraj Špiler (Georg Spiller)
Born: April 8th 1900 in Zagreb (Address: Nova ves 25)
Ethnicity: Croat
Nationality: Yugoslav
Father: Vjekoslav Špiler, (in WWII Georg will Germanize his father's name into Alois)
Mother: Marija née Rosandić
Education: attended elementary schools and gymnasium in Karlovac where he lived 1902-1915, Zagreb 1915-1917 and Ilok where his family lived but he graduated from gymnasium in near-by town of Vukovar
University: In 1918 he signed Higher Technical School in Zagreb (shipbuilding department), but on his father's insistence switched to Faculty of Law in Zagreb, graduated in 1923, PhD in 1927
Sentenced to death: December 2nd 1948

In 1921 his father Vjekoslav, a lawyer and notary died. That meant poverty for family, because Juraj Špiler had 1 brother and 8 sisters. As a student he worked in the Croatian Statistical Office and in District Court for Workers Insurance to finance his studies.

He was "brought up in Yugoslav national spirit". It means his loyalty was towards Yugoslavia and not Croatia.

In 1924 he entered police service. He worked in Zagreb police department 1924-1935. For 11 months he worked in criminal police, then he went to 1st police station in Zagreb, becoming its chief. After year and a half he was promoted to the chief of traffic department. In spring 1929 he becomes the chief of the department for controlling the foreigners. From January 1929 the dictatorial regime was introduced, but Špiler was successfully advancing in service. In winter 1933/34 he became chief of the public security. In the beginning of 1935 he became the chief of all the police detectives (agents). In Zagreb he was the chief operative against the Ustashe movement. His success in fighting Ustashe was a consequence of widely used torture techniques. In one of the skirmishes he was wounded in the leg, which made him limp. He was also effective against the Communist movement in Zagreb. He was decorated with Order of St. Sava in 1934.

In September 1935 he was transferred to Križevci, for the chief of Town Police. In 1936 he was posted to the same duty to Vinkovci.

In September 1939 (days after autonomous Banovina of Croatia was formed) he was transferred outside of Croatia to Novi Sad and became Deputy Chief of Police. At this post he was helping the Volksdeutschers arrested as spies.

On May 22nd 1941 Dr Sepp Janko asked Karl Pamer, SS-lieutenant [Sturmführer ?] in Novi Sad to find a post for Spiller somewhere in Reich, but Pamer didn't trust Spiller's change of heart (from Yugoslav becoming a German). So, finally there was a post for him in Banat, in Veliki Bečkerek (Gross-Betschkerek) where he was hired by Franz Rajt (Reit, Reith ?), because Volksdeutche administrators in Banat lacked professional policemen.
So, on August 1st 1941 Spiller became the chief of Town Police in Gross-Betschkerek (former Petrovgrad).

German staff sergeant Heine from Feldgendarmerie reported to Kreiskommandatur Betschkerek commander Amelung that he witnessed torture of a 24 years old man conducted on September 5th 1941 by Spiller and his staff.
Spiller later reported that it was interrogation of a Communist - Žarko Momirski.

In February 1942 Spiller became Chief of Public Security Command (Kommando der oeffentlichen Sicherheit) for the whole of Banat region.

Spiller organized very efficient Striking Troop (Stosstrupp) consisting of about 15 detectives, which was very successful in fighting the Communists.
He managed to eliminate on November 4th 1942 Žarko Zrenjanin, the head of the Communist network in Banat and later People's Hero of Yugoslavia.
Even nowadays the capital of Banat is called Zrenjanin (former Veliki Bečkerek and Petrovgrad).

On October 2nd 1944 Spiller left Banat and ended up in Mauerbach, Austria. On December 19th 1944 he crossed to Budweis (České Budějovice), from where he went to Bavaria in April of 1945.

Rajt noticed in 1941 that Spiller speaks very bad German, that his right indicator finger is paralyzed and that he limps.

In US custody in 1946 Spiller was writing elaborates about Communism in Yugoslavia.

He was extradited to Yugoslavia between August 25th and December 2nd 1947.

Family:
In 1929 he married Anka Radić. They got a daughter named Aleksandra. They lived at Medveščak 76, while in Zagreb.

In 1944 his brother in-law Boško Pavlović, worked as a state secretary in the Presidency of the Nedić's Government of Serbia, so obviously one of Spiller's sisters was married for a Serb. Not a surprise, if they were brought up in Yugoslav spirit.

Party membership:
In 1920-ies he was a member of Samostalna demokratska stranka (SDS - Independent Democratic Party), a Yugoslav nationalist party, supported mainly by Serbs in Croatia and some Yugoslav-oriented Croats.

Decorations:
Order of St. Sava in 1934
Kriegsverdienstkreuz (War Merit Cross) (without swords)
Kriegsverdienstkreuz 2nd class with swords
Kriegsverdienstkreuz 1st class with swords
Wound Badge (Verwundetenabzeichen)


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zastava128
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Re:

#243

Post by zastava128 » 23 Apr 2013, 16:00

David Thompson wrote:1945 Trial(s), date(s) and location unknown
<snip>
Laxa, Vladimir "Vitez" (death)
<snip>
Laxa was not executed. That information appeared in the book Tko je tko u NDH? (Who is who in the Independent State of Croatia), which was made in haste and thus contains a number of errors. One of my colleagues has done extensive research on him, and has found evidence Laxa died after a series of strokes in a hospital in Zagreb on 23 June 1945. Further, there is no evidence he was prosecuted (though there is no doubt he would have been, was he not on death's door when the partisans took over Zagreb). The date of death can also be found on his grave in Mirogoj cementary, Zagreb.

The next tome of the Croatian Bibliographical Lexicon is due to be published soon (in Croatian), and it will contain the correct information on Laxa.

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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#244

Post by radevich » 22 May 2013, 19:22

David Thompson wrote:Helm, Hans (?-24.1.1947 [SS-Obersturmbannfuehrer] -- German police attache to Croatia in Agram (Zagreb) {arrested and put on trial 9 Dec 1946 by the Supreme Military Court of Yugoslavia at Belgrade on war crimes charges; convicted and sentenced to death by hanging 22 Dec 1946 (NYT 23 Dec 1946:2:3 & 8:3; LT 23 Dec 1946:3e); executed at Belgrade 24 Jan 1947 (NYT 25 Jan 1947:2:3).(Eichmann Trial Exhibit T/892; Exhibit T/893, Statement of Hans Helm dated 18 Sept 1946; Octavianus post in Third Reich Forum: "Yugoslav War Crimes Proceedings," http://keywest.dnsvault.com/~forum3rd/p ... php?t=7980).}
Hans HELM SS-Nr.77 179 geb.30.06.1909 executed at Belgrade 24.01.1947. NSDAP-Nr.3 204 999
Stubaf.: 01.03.1941; SS-Obersturmbannführer: 30.01.1944

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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#245

Post by radevich » 18 Jan 2014, 12:32

ansata1976 wrote:
Hermann Doujak
Doujak, Dr. Hermann SS-Nr.341 528
Ostuf.(A-SS): 09.11.1942 90. Sta.
Regierungsrat
Politischer Kommissar/Landrat Landkreises Krainburg gehört heute zur Republik Slowenien Ab 1. 2. 1942 Bis 1945?

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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#246

Post by ansata1976 » 25 Jan 2014, 14:32

I am interested in more information about a trial:

23.12.1961
In einem Prozeß gegen den Kriegsverbrecher Hans Kohl aus München vor dem Bezirksgericht der serbischen Stadt TitovoUilce haben bisher zwanzig Zeugen den Angeklagten schwer belastet Nach den Angaben der vernommenen Zeugen hat Kohl, der während des Krieges Leiter des faschistischen Geheimdienstes In Uzice war, auch die Verantwortung für die Ermordung von 3 Einwohnern aus dem Dort Mocicci zu tragen .

What was the sentence??

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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#247

Post by gloriavictis » 07 Feb 2014, 15:42

ansata1976 wrote:I am interested in more information about a trial:

23.12.1961
In einem Prozeß gegen den Kriegsverbrecher Hans Kohl aus München vor dem Bezirksgericht der serbischen Stadt TitovoUilce haben bisher zwanzig Zeugen den Angeklagten schwer belastet Nach den Angaben der vernommenen Zeugen hat Kohl, der während des Krieges Leiter des faschistischen Geheimdienstes In Uzice war, auch die Verantwortung für die Ermordung von 3 Einwohnern aus dem Dort Mocicci zu tragen .

What was the sentence??
On december 23 1961. Hans Kohl (alias Ivan Kolić) was sentenced to 11 years in prison Sremska Mitrovica by municipal court in Titovo Užice (now Užice) in Serbia (than SFR Yugoslavia).

Jailed 11 Years For War Crimes TTTOVO UZICE (Reuters)

"West German businessman Hans Kohl, arrested on a busi- ness trip to Yugoslavia last March, was jailed here for 11 years for war crimes committed with the German army 20 years ago. The prosecutor said evidence proved Kohl took part in civilian murders and other war crimes while serving with the Nazi counter-intelligence. Kohl, 51, and married with four children, pleaded not guilty. The prosecution alleged in the four-day trial that during the Second World War Kohl, under the "cover" name of Ivan Kolic, was head of the German intelligence service in this small Serbian town, headquarters for President Tito's partisans during the early days of their struggle against the Nazi occupying forces."

Source:http://newspaperarchive.com/lethbridge- ... 27/page-22

Article picture
Jailed_Kohl Hans.JPG
Jailed_Kohl Hans.JPG (54.95 KiB) Viewed 7661 times
Additional, prosecutor was Miodrag Todorović and judge in this case was Đorđe Đurić. Hans Kohl was arrested on march 1960 in the serbian town Subotica, nearby Yugoslavian - Hungarian border. Trial against Hans Kohl has begun in november 1961 and ended on 23. december 1961.

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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#248

Post by G. Trifkovic » 19 Feb 2014, 14:54

Hi all,

according to one post-war Yugoslav study, Hans Kohl, a.k.a. Ivan Kolić worked as a businessman in Serbia prior to 1941 and headed "Abwehrtrupp Uhu" in Užice from 1942-1944. His activities included intelligence-gathering and organizing wireless-operator course for the members of the Serbian Volunteer Corps. No details on alleged executions, but it was recorded that the Trupp sometimes carried out arrests; on once occasion it arrested two Serbian peasants for supporting the Chetniks, interrogated them and then handed them over to the Sicherheitsdienst which was largely responsible for hostages reprisals in Serbia after 1941.

Source: Nemačka obaveštajna služba, Vol. IV, p. 299.

Cheers,

G.

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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#249

Post by danyb » 30 Aug 2014, 09:35

hello !

about the "Norwegen Trial" , i found this link:
http://www.smrtnakazna.rs/DesktopModule ... r_2977.pdf

2 questions:
in définitive , how many defendants in this trial ??
what sentences againt those who are not executed ??

thank you
danyb

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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#250

Post by danyb » 19 Sep 2014, 18:26

et bien...

about trial of Handschar Members in Sarajevo , i'm looking for the sentences against these defendants:

Jakob Arfsten
Willi Ashauer
Kurt Bahlau
Otto Bayer
Hermann Denecke
Wilhelm Ebeling
Eduard Eckert
Robert Ehlers
Herbert Eidner
Franz Gerwe
Wilhelm Haak
Günther Hädecke
Franz Labjon
Konrad Langwost
Günther Lautenschläger
Karl-Heinz Lorenz
Wilhelm Mahn
Bruno Mathiessen
Heinz Mehl
Eduard Mischnek
Alfred Petzely
Wilhelm Riemmann
Harry Runge
Alfred Schrader
Heinz Stratmann
Erich Weil
Fritz Wiegel

thanks
danyb

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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#251

Post by ansata1976 » 30 Sep 2014, 21:32

I am interested in more information about:

Lieut.-Colonel Otto Wehofer
extradition from Vienna's French sector 1947
sentenced by a military tribunal at Nis for war crimes
Executed 03.07.1948

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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#252

Post by uviktor » 02 Apr 2015, 13:23

I would like to get informations about one special trial: Belgrade from 22-30 August 1947.
My father was BAUMEISTER Rolf, SS Ostfhr. Btl.Adjutant II./SS Geb.Jäg.Rgt.27.
He was one of the thirty-eight German members of the SS Handschar Division who were extradited to Yugoslavia after the war.
After the trial from 22.-30. August 1947 in Belgrade, he was one of the ten who were executed on 16.7.1948 in Sarajewo.
I search for informations about the accusation, about the sentence and the reasons for this sentence, especially against Rolf Baumeister.

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Re: Branimir Altgayer [Altgaier]

#253

Post by Ivan Ž. » 03 Jan 2016, 13:53

Allen Milcic wrote:From May to August 1943 he is sent as an observer to the Eastern Front.
Altgayer was no observer, he was a squadron commander within the SS-Kavallerie-Division, and as such surely participated in various anti-partisan actions which happened in this period. He was also awarded with the EK II in July by his commander Fegelein. Does anyone have more info on Altgayer's service in Russia and what was the reason of him being sent to the front in the first place?

Ivan

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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#254

Post by ansata1976 » 08 May 2016, 20:01

I am intersted in information about:

Hermann Farnleitner
03.04.1908 in Weiz
SS-Obersturmführer
death sentence 08.10.1948 in Ljubljana
was the sentence carried out?

Georg Kramhöller
28.1.1905 in Rietzmeiss
SS-Untersturmführer
death sentence 26.06.1947 in ???
was the sentence carried out?

Josef ’Sepp’ Hahn
SS-Scharführer
born ???
Gestapo Belgrad 10.05.1941 - 20.09.1941 then Gestapo Mitrovica, Sabac, Loznica and Shkodra until October 1944
Death sentence in Belgrade 22.12.1946
executed 24.01.1947

Josef Eckert
born ???
SS-Sturmscharführer
deputy Gestapo chief in Kraljevo September 1942 to September 1943, Head of the Gestapo in Bor since Juli 1943 until 15.01.1944
Death sentence in Belgrade 22.12.1946
executed 24.01.1947

Karl Reitz
born ???
Polizei-Major
Chief of Police in Kraljevo und Kragujevac, 16 April 1943. bis 19 Oktober 1944
Death sentence in Belgrade 22.12.1946
executed 24.01.1947

George_W
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Re: Yugoslav War Crimes Trials of German Officials

#255

Post by George_W » 09 May 2016, 00:15

Farnleitner and Hahn both extradited from British military zone to Yugoslavia (consecutively in 1947 and 1946).

Eckert extradited from US zone on 11/02/1946.

Unfortunately i don't have other details except that Kramhöller was executed.

George

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