Interrogation protocol of Kurt Franz, a former member of Sonderkommando Reinhard and deputy commander and later commander of the Treblinka extermination camp. In his testimony, Franz discusses the Euthanasia facilities as well as the Belzec and Treblinka extermination camps, downplayed his role in the extermination sites as “logistical” and overseeing Ukrainian guards.
On March 16, 1946, Rudolf Höss, the former commandant of Auschwitz concentration camp, gave a statement while in British capture. In this confession, he stated that he “personally arranged on orders received from Himmler in May 1941 the gassing of two million persons”.
On April 16, 1962, Adele Freigang, former resident of the village Chełmno nad Nerem (Kulmhof), provided a detailed testimony to West-German investigators . In autumn 1941, Freigang heard rumors of a Gestapo commando in Kulmhof, which later seized several key buildings. Reports surfaced about transports of Jewish people, initially believed to be going through a transit camp but later revealed to be destined for extermination. The victims were killed in gas vans, and their bodies disposed of in the nearby forest.
Interrogation protocol of Josef Peham, dated December 12, 1962, on his experiences in Kulmhof (Chelmno) extermination camp.
Interrogation protocol of Wilhelm Görlich, former member of the SS-Sonderkommando Kulmhof, dated 21 December 1960, recorded in Bonn on his participation and experiences in the extermination camp Kulmhof (Chełmno).
Interrogation protocol of Walter Burmeister, former member of the SS-Sonderkommando Kulmhof, dated 24 January 1961, recorded in Flensburg on his participation and experiences in the extermination camp Kulmhof (Chełmno). According to this, in late 1941, Burmeister was assigned to drive Hauptsturmführer Herbert Lange to Kulmhof (Chełmno), where a special unit was being formed for the extermination of Jews and others. He described his duties, which included managing the kitchen, driving duties, and distributing special rations. He also detailed the killing operations at Kulmhof, including the use of gas vans to murder victims. Burmeister admitted to giving deceptive speeches to victims about to be killed and driving gas vans. He claimed he could not recall his thoughts or motivations at the time, nor could he explain why he did not resist the orders.
Interrogation protocol of Fritz Ismer, former member of the SS-Sonderkommando Kulmhof, dated 9 November 1960, recorded in West-Berlin. Ismer mentions his transfer to Kulmhof (Chełmno) under SS-Hauptsturmführer Lange and describes the mass murder using gas vans and burial in mass graves. He admits that he handled the valuables taken from victims but denied participation in violence. In spring 1942, cremation ovens were built for burning of the bodies in the mass graves. Ismer also mentions SS-Standartenführer Blobel, who directed the open air cremations.
Certified copy of interrogation protocol of former forester Hans Staegemeir, dated 30 August 1961, recorded in Paderborn (West-Germany) on his experiences and observations on the extermination of Jews near Kulmhof (Chełmno). Staegemeir was appointed as a district forester to Wartheland and witnessed unusual and secretive operations involving the transportation of Jewish people and the ominous presence of gas vans. The area was heavily policed and eventually fenced off and raised suspicions among local forestry officials. Staegemeir described the regular shuttle movement of sealed, gray vehicles that resembled small furniture vans, intensifying in frequency, sometimes every 10 minutes. His observations are also recalled in Heinrich May’s manuscript on Kulmhof from early 1945.
Certified copy of interrogation protocol of forestry official Heinrich May dated 13 December 1960, recorded in Bonn (West-Germany) on his experiences and observations linked to the Holocaust operations near Kulmhof (Chelmno). May was a longstanding member of the NSDAP and SS, career took a dark turn during WWII when he found himself managing a forestry office near Kulmhof extermination camp. May witnessed suspicious activities, including the movement of “gas vans” used for exterminating Jewish individuals. Despite not seeing the killings firsthand, the evidence was overwhelming, with frequent sightings of smoke rising from the forest. Bothmann, the commander of the Sonderkommando operating the site, later revealed to May the presence of mass graves and confirmed the scale of the atrocities. At the end of the war, May penned a manuscript, “The Great Lie,” which recounted these grim details but was never published. In the post-war interrogation, May corroborated the details presented in his manuscript.