After theft of sign, Poland earmarks more money for Auschwitz security
Five suspects arrested face up to 10 years in prison if convicted of stealing and dismantling sign.
By Roman Frister Tags: Auschwitz Israel newsPoland's culture minister has promised the Auschwitz museum money to step up security after the infamous Arbeit Macht Frei ("Work Sets You Free) sign was stolen from the site of the former Nazi death camp.
Bogdan Zdrojewski on Wednesday earmarked 400,000 zlotys ($137,000) for improving external security at the memorial site in southern Poland. It is made up of two camps, Auschwitz and Birkenau, and sprawls nearly 500 acres (200 hectares).
He said guards who failed to prevent the theft, which police say, was done on commission from abroad, last week have been suspended and other museum employees could face consequences.
Police found the sign that symbolizes Nazi Germany's atrocities cut into three piece Sunday and arrested five suspects.
A still unidentified resident of Sweden is suspected of being the middle man in the brazen theft of the infamous Arbeit Macht Frei ("Work Sets You Free") sign from the Auschwitz concentration camp last Friday.
Artur Wrona, the chief prosecutor in Krakow, says evidence indicates the crime was commissioned by a person living outside Poland. Polish media, without citing sources, reported suspicions focusing on someone in Sweden, but Wrona refused to confirm or deny the reports.
In Stockholm, a Swedish police official said they've not been contacted about any links.
While Polish police are working with Interpol, there is still no information on the motive, whether it was political or a collector wanted the sign.
Moving the infamous sign out of Poland would not have been difficult, as there are no border checks within the European Union.
Three men who police say have confessed have reenacted the crime for investigators. They reportedly are petty criminals who had been hired by a construction contractor for theft.
When police found the sign on Sunday, it had been cut into three pieces and hidden under snow in the woods. Five suspects were detained in northern Poland.
All five suspects face up to 10 years in prison if convicted of stealing and dismantling the sign. Prosecutor Piotr Kosmaty said the three who had confessed showed investigators how they unscrewed 30-kg. sign from the gateposts and tore it up.
Kosmaty said later the reenactment gave police some insights, but he did not elaborate. He said the other two suspects denied involvement and even being at Auschwitz.
In Krakow, police displayed the three parts of the broken sign for journalists. Some of the steel pipe that formed its outline was bent and the letter "i" was missing from the word "Frei" - it was left behind during the theft and was recovered at the scene.
Police forensics expert Lidia Puchacz said that cutting and sawing tools used in the theft were found at the home of one of the suspects.
Krakow police spokesman Dariusz Nowak said the 115,000 zlotys ($40,000) reward for helping find the sign may be paid out to several people.
For now, an exact replica of the sign hangs in its place.
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Polish police handle part of the recovered Auschwitz sign. |
| Photo by: (AP) |
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How 'hot and bothered' would you be if your relatives had been at Auschwitz?
Do not worry. They get max 2 years..
5 peopel with a criminal record remove the sign at the Aushwiatz/Oswiecim Camp entrance, which is a museum of the notorious concentration camp. It is reported that the steal was commissioned by someone in Sweden to get the sign possibly for a Nazi memorobilia collector. So waht does Lehi and Irgun operations during the revolt against British Colonialist has to do with it. Except thta as usual you wanted to make a swipe against Jews
My point was that Israel elected well known terrorists as their Prime Minister. This was a major slap in the face to two of the nations which fell victim to the terrorist activity, Sweden and the UK. Nowadays, Israelis criticize both these nations for trivial "slights". In reality both of those nations have reason to hate and mistrust Israel. As a firm critic of Israel, it makes my job easier when Israels supporters condemn resistance on the part of the Palestinains as being terrorist activity, and, at the same time, defend Jewish terrorism. That is worth a smile every time.
Nothing good comes out of Sweden any more.
Yes - like you said. There is no proof - or even a suspicion - that the IDF was "ordered" to go fetch ... But those who happened to be dead already was transferred to Yehuda Hiss .. We know that already!
Natalie Durson is so biased against Israel that she needs to research anything on a daily basis that can make Israel look bad. Her posting about the assasination of Count Folke Bernadette is true...but with some details that she does not mention. Motive for the assasination. This is not to say the assasination is condoned ... but after the Holocaust many Jews were hot heads and completely understandable. Any group pushed to that point could retaliate.Following are 5 changes the Count wanted the Israelis to do. 1. That the State of Israel surrender the Negev to the Arab State; 2. That international Jerusalem with a large Jewish majority be turned over to the Arabs; 3.That the port of Haifa, belonging to Israel, become a ?free? port; 4. That the airport of Lydda, belonging to Israel, also become ?free?; 5.That immigration to Israel be limited or suspended, depending on the desire of the Arabs in their neighboring state, after two years of free immigration.
What happened is that Dr. Jehuda Hiss,ex-Head Abu Kabir Center,did authorized removal of corneas without getting permission from relatives of the deceased. Dr. Hiss was demoted and fired as the Head of Abu Kebir center. An illegal action by a Center Head is not a action iof IDF nor Israel as a whole. No more then Actions of Swedish Nazis, many form among the industrail leaders (Founder of IKEA) a reflection on all Swedes. IDF nor Israeli Government did not issue orders to Yehuda Hiss to remove organs from death bodies of Palestinians or IDF soldiers. GET IT? DON"T SMEAR ALL ISRAELIS WITH ONE BRUSH. SUCH STATEENTS ARE REMINISCENT OF NAZI AND STALINIST PROPAGANDA.
Jackie, Sweden and Switzerland are different countries-.
You should talk less about the organ harvasting story or people might notice that Israel and IDF actually has admitted that it was true. But this is about the theft of the infamous sign of Auschwitz and I hope those responsible for that theft will get many years in prison. We don't know what their reason for stealing it was, but since it is such a strong symbol it should be seen as a serious crime.
Well, if what Dino says is true, and since I do not believe Switzerland has extradition treaties with other countries, Arabs in Israeli jails should try to flee to Switzerland before being caught for their murders attacks on Jews.
And you did just the same, repeated the lie and called it truth! I think a hate crime, such as fabricating bloodlabels should carry a sentence well over 10 years. With Sweeds like you I miss time Sweden was out of Europe.
Count Folke Bernadotte was a Swedish nobleman and diplomat. During WW2 he helped release many prisoners from the hands of the Nazis, including hundreds of Jews. After the war he joined the UN. He was assassinated in 1948 by Lehi, a Jewish zionist terrorist group. Later, the leader of that group, Itzhak Shamir became the PM of Israel. Certainly this was a slap in the face to Sweden. Israel slapped the UK in a similar fashion when Menachem Begin became PM. He was leader of the Irgun, another Jewish terror group who assassinated UK diplomats and also kidnapped and lynched some UK soldiers. Considerinf all this history, it's hilarious to see Israeli Jews so hot and bothered over a sign theft.
Send the original to Yad va Shem for safe keeping. In ISRAEL there are no sick collectors of Nasti memorabilia.
Sweeds desacrating Shoa is a fact, unlike the hoaxs on organ theft
Don't jump to conclusion it was a Swedisg national behind the dismantling of this sign, which to all and everybody seem to be a replica anyhow. Noted Peres is signing ove his body part to medicin. Is that for atoning for the governments demand that the Swedish Foreign Minister should scold the newpaper that broke the news of body parts snatching of murdered Palestinians?
....some murderers in Switzerland won't even get that much jail time. Instead of having to go to jail, they should rather be obliged to watch the "Holocaust" TV series....
too many comments from us on this matter.we should act silently and without fanfare.
and it can be use as a ladder.