Perpetrators

Perpetrators

Perpetrator

Willi Lenz (1894–1945): The “Doctor” of Kulmhof

Willi Lenz, a Schutzpolizei officer born in 1894, was one of the most brutal perpetrators at the Kulmhof (Chełmno) extermination camp. Known as the “Doctor,” he supervised forced laborers in the forest camp, personally shot those who were exhausted or survived the gas vans, and later used his experience in operations to exhume and burn the bodies of Nazi victims. Returning to Kulmhof in 1944, he continued killing prisoners during the liquidation of the Łódź Ghetto. In January 1945, while helping to execute the camp’s remaining Jewish prisoners before the German retreat, Lenz was killed during their resistance in the granary.

Perpetrator

Plate, Albert – Deputy Commander of Kulmhof Extermination Camp

At the end of 1941, the SS-Sonderkommando leader Herbert Lange recruited Plate to the extermination camp Kulmhof. After the departure of SS-Obersturmführer Herbert Otto in early 1942, Plate assumed the position of acting camp commander until the camp’s dissolution. In this role, Plate was a key figure in the extermination of Jews at Kulmhof. He personally shot members of the Jewish work commando selected for execution.

hans staegemeir
Perpetrator

Staegemeir, Hans – Forester at Body Disposal Area of Kulmhof Extermination Camp

Hans Staegemeir was forester of the area at Kulmhof extermination camp. He observed the activities of theSonderkommando and shared his experiences with his superior, Forester Heinrich May. Members of the Sonderkommando visited his forestry office to make telephone calls. Staegemeir also had the opportunity to visit the extermination site in the forest camp.

hans bothmann
Perpetrator

Bothmann, Hans – Commander of Kulmhof Extermination Camp

In March 1942, Hans Bothmann assumed the role of commander at the Kulmhof extermination camp, succeeding Herbert Lange in this position. Witness accounts depict a man who oscillated between calculated professionalism and unpredictable cruelty. He was “generally calm and deliberate,” recalled one former colleague, “except when he had been drinking.” And he drank often. Others remembered him shooting Jewish prisoners in the neck when they were no longer able to work, or casually joking about killing his own men.

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