A
NAZI executioner wanted for mass murder and concentration
camp atrocities strolls through the park in a picture which
shames Germany.
Evil Klaas Faber, 88, looked like an ordinary OAP when The
Sun went to confront him about his war crimes.
But his white hair and glasses hide a shocking past as a bloodthirsty killer
who volunteered for Adolf Hitler's notorious SS and a roving
Gestapo death squad.
Faber was sentenced to death after being convicted of war crimes in 1947. But
his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment, and in 1952
he escaped from prison in Breda, Holland, and fled to sanctuary
in Germany.
Demands by Britain and other nations to hand over Faber - listed as the fifth
most-wanted Nazi fugitive - have since been rejected by Germany.
Incredibly, officials still protect the Dutch-born killer and insist he is immune
from extradition after Hitler granted him German citizenship
as an SS volunteer.
Local privacy laws mean that Germans cannot be told Faber is a war criminal,
or see photos of him enjoying his freedom.
But The Sun found Faber in the medieval
town of Ingolstadt, where he lives with frail wife Jacoba.
The name K. Faber marks the doorbell on his modern flat.
After years as an anonymous office worker at Audi, Faber now enjoys a cosy retirement
relaxing in local parks and going on shopping trips in his
VW Golf.
Neighbours say the dad of three is quiet, but friendly and polite.
The Sun confronted him and asked if
he felt any remorse for his crimes or compassion for his
victims and their relatives.
Faber's smile immediately vanished,
replaced by an icy stare and grim silence.
His trial heard he was an enthusiastic
Nazi who volunteered to join the SS in 1940, then travelled
around northern Holland ruthlessly slaughtering Jews and
Dutch resistance fighters.
He rose to become an officer with
the notorious SD secret police and worked for the Gestapo
as an executioner at Westerbork concentration camp, where
teenage diarist Anne Frank was held.
He was convicted of murdering at least 22 victims, but the court heard he personally
carried out mass shootings and experts believe the real toll
was much higher.
Faber was then one of seven Nazi officers who escaped from Breda prison on Boxing
Day 1952.
They fled to Germany, where they were
welcomed at the border and given coffee and cakes by sympathetic
customs officials.
The gang were given token fines for
illegally crossing the border, then set free. German authorities
still honour the special privileges granted by Hitler himself
to his most hardcore followers.
Faber became a German in 1943 under
the "Fuhrer's Law" - a personal decree granting German citizenship to foreign Nazi volunteers.
It is the only one of Hitler's laws
never to have been revoked, and Germany still uses it to
deny repeated attempts to return Faber to prison in the Netherlands.
Outraged Holocaust campaigners last
night urged Germany to stop protecting Faber and hand him
over to serve his sentence.
Simon Wiesenthal Centre director Dr
Efraim Zuroff said: "He is one of the most evil men alive. For Germany to continue shielding him is
a shocking stain on the nation's reputation.
"We are talking about someone who volunteered for the SS so he could help Hitler's
regime turn his vile beliefs into reality. He didn't just
support the Holocaust, he actively helped those behind it.
"The families of those he killed deserve justice, and it's time for Germany to
stop hiding behind a law that Hitler brought in."
Sickened Arnold Karstens, of the charity
War Crimes Investigations, said: "It is beyond belief that this man is free. Germany should hang its head in shame.
"Faber's crimes are so
extreme he should die in prison. What makes it even worse
is he has never shown remorse. It is sickening to see him
enjoying freedom."
German authorities last night confirmed
that Faber was immune from prosecution and extradition, despite
repeated requests by the Netherlands to hand him over. State
prosecutors decided in 2006 to classify Faber's crimes as
manslaughter. So a time limit on trying him in Germany -
which does not apply to murder - has now expired. A spokesman
added: "Klaas Faber is a German citizen and cannot be extradited for this."
thesun.co.uk
|