Jerusalem – The Simon Wiesenthal Center welcomed the conviction today in Germany of Stutthof guard Bruno Dey, but harshly criticized the suspension of his two year jail sentence.
In a statement issued here today by its chief Nazi-hunter, Holocaust historian Dr. Efraim Zuroff, the Center expressed its deep disappointment that Dey’s two years jail sentence was suspended by the court, and called the decision “an insult to the survivors.”
According to Zuroff:
“This is a classic case of misplaced sympathy syndrome. Instead of validating the suffering of the survivors in Stutthof by punishing the perpetrator, the judges insulted them by sending Dey home, happy that he will not be punished at all. The fact that not a single one of the four Nazi war criminals convicted during the past decade, since the change in German prosecution policy (which started with the Demjanjuk case) has sat one day in jail, is a serious taint on the judicial process.”
For additional information please contact the Israel Office of the Wiesenthal Center:
Tel: +972-2-563-1274 or Tel: +972-50-721-4156
www.operationlastchance.org
www.wiesenthal.com
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