War Crimes Trials - Vol. II The Belsen Trial. 'The Trial of Josef Kramer and Forty Four Others'

(101) DEPOSITION OF ENGEL SANDOR (Czech, aged 21)

2. On 1st July, 1945, I noticed a man in Kitchen No. 6 in Camp 3, Belsen Camp, whom I recognised as Anton Polanski, who had been the assistant Block Leader of the block in which I lived in Belsen. At the time I saw him I was with Mendel Fuchs. Polanski, when he saw us, tried to get away, but with the assistance of some British soldiers we caught him and took him to the Military Police.

3. I was in Camp 1, Block 12, Belsen, and Polanski was the assistant Block Leader. One day early in April, 1945, about 3 am., we were all called out of our block. Grouped round the doorway there were several men, one of whom was Polanski. They were all armed with wooden clubs or rubber truncheons or leather belts, and as we filed past them we were all beaten. I myself was beaten on the head and neck with a rubber truncheon wielded by Polanski. I had a deep red mark round my neck for some time after the beating. While I was being beaten I fell down and Polanski continued to beat me, and at the same time kicked me in the body with his heavy boots. He shouted that I did not want to work and still continued to beat me. I managed to get on my feet and worked the rest of the day carrying corpses. There was no apparent reason for this beating.

4. On the following day I was engaged on the same work, but in order to avoid direct contact with the dead bodies we covered our hands with small pieces of cloth. When Polanski noticed this he took the cloth, which had already been in contact with dead bodies, from my hands and stuffed it into my mouth.

5. For the next few days I tried to avoid Polanski as much as possible as I was scared of what he might do to me. Early in the morning of 15th April, the day on which the British arrived, he saw me with some of my friends. He followed us, driving us on all the time. He was carrying a wooden club. He shouted that all the corpses had to be removed from sight. In my party there was a Pole named Jacobovitsch who was very weak. He was aged about 40 and was a cobbler. Polanski started to shout at him to make him move more quickly, then started to beat him with the club. Jacobovitsch fell down and cried out, "I can’t carry any longer." Polanski continued to beat him with his club until Jacobovitsch died. Polanski then ordered myself and other prisoners to drag the body to the large pit to drop it in, which we did.