Commission for Internal Safetyin Prague

A Criminal Complaint:

against the employees of the Geheime Staatspolizei, Leitstelle Brünn, Aussendienststelle Olmütz: Karl /?/ Bankl 1Note 1: Karl Bankl and Hans Hüntgens 1Note 1: Paul Hündgen, current residence unknown

Once

The accused, Karel /?/ Bankl and Hans Hüntgens 3Note 3: Paul Hündgen, the first a top criminal secretary (Kriminalobersekretär) and the second a criminal secretary (Kriminalsekretär) of the Gestapo in Olomouc, were also in charge of Jewish Affairs in the so-called Oberlandrat in Olomouc and, as such, committed crimes in accordance to par. 5 and /a b/ of the retribution decree upon Czechoslovak citizens, specifically:

In 1941, German authorities ordered all who were considered Jews under the Nuremberg Laws to hand over by a certain time all of their musical instruments. They had to hand overtheirinstruments to their relevant religious community in closed boxes with the name and addresses of the person handing them over. The Jewish Religious Community wasn’t obligated to inspect the contents and wasn’t authorized to do so. The instruments were stored in the rooms of the Jewish Religious Community and they waited for an order telling them when to take them to Prague to the so-called Zentralstelle. Before they were sent to Prague, the accused Bankl stopped by the Jewish Religious Community in Prostějov, accompanied by the former head of the Olomouc hospital Dr. Marzolla, and ordered several of the boxes to be opened, and said that Dr. Marzoll, who was an expert on musical instruments, would look at the instruments. It was apparent that Marzoll was informed about which instruments belong to certain people. In Prostějov, even after the occupation, a private string quartet performed, in which Mizerovský, a clerk of the Tax Administration in Olomouc,

played. He also played in Olomouc and likely spoke about the beautiful violins etc. that the members of the Prostějov Jewish quartet owned. During the review, when Marzoll, with the help of Bankl, probably searched for these instruments for himself, it came to light that several people didn’t hand over these valuable instruments, but instead had handed over ordinary instruments. Bankl ordered the original instruments to be handed over within a week and promised that he would abandon the criminal prosecution in this case. In spite of this promise, he arrested a member of the above-mentioned quartet, Rudolf Weissbarth, the very same day, and another member, Artur Auerbach, as well. Weissbarth died that day. According to the statement, he committed suicide by hanging in prison, and Auerbach died a week later in the Gestapo jail in Olomouc, also by hanging, according to the statement. Bankl caused the death of two Czechoslovak citizens.

The accused, Hüntgens 4Note 4: Paul Hündgen, sometimes came to Prostějov and interrogated Jews who were accused of various trumped up charges and arrested many Jewish citizens. Out of these, a significant number was transported to the concentration camps and killed there. Thus, for example, he was arrested in the fall of 1941, when Heydrich declared martial law, a certain Pollak, who resisted a police officer during official negotiations. Although Pollak was mentally disabled, he was sentenced to death by a martial court and executed. Another Jewish citizen, Karel Fuchs, was out walking with his wife one day during this same period. A female member of Bund der Mädchen who was walking past them loudly remarked that Fuchs was a Jew. Fuchs, who got mad easily, answered, whereupon the girl summoned an officer, who wrote Fuchs up.

One day later, he was arrested by the accused Hüntgens 5Note 5: Paul Hündgen, sent to the Kounic dormitories in Brno, and then transported to the concentration camp in Auschwitz, where he died several days later, very likely murdered. In the fall of that year, during the night of September 30th, 1941, a large number of Prostějov citizens, among them many Jews, was arrested by the Olomouc Gestapo with the help of the accused Bankl and Hüntgens 5Note 5: Paul Hündgen. These people were taken to the Kounic dormitories in Brno, where only several of them remained. Julius Zwicker was transported to the concentration camp in Auschwitz, where he died. One of these arrested, Heřman Gelb died in the Kounic dormitories in Brno.

As proof of this claim, we submit the witness interrogation of JUDr. Arnošt Wald, a lawyer in Prague II., Bolzánova St. no. 1 and Josef Grabscheid, a businessman in Prostějov, Rejskova 41.

In Prague, on 22. 1. 1946

Attorney

JUDr. Arnošt Wald

Prague II, Bolzánova čís. 1

Phone number 387-24

In Prague, one 22. 1. 1946

Titl.

Documentation Campaign

Prague V.

Josefovská 7

Based on my telephone conversation with Dr. Weinberger, I am attaching the criminal complaint against gestapo members Bankl and Hüntgens 7Note 7: Paul Hündgen.

I am sending you the original and 2 carbon copies.

Respectfully,

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