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)