Satement
' of
- Standartenfuehrer Martin Sandberger
I, Martin Sandberger, make under oath and after being first duly sworn in, the following declarations:
In my capacity as group leader Via at the RSHA, the following became known to me:
In February 1945, I was told by group leader VIb, SS Standartenfuehrer Steimle, that he had to represent Schellenberg at the daily section chief meetings. On that occasion, Mueller, section chief IV, presented to Kaltenbrunner a list of names, who were in confinement in or close to Berlin, and Kaltenbrunner should decide, if they were to be transported to Southern Germany or if they should be shot, because the Russian Armies were closing in on Berlin. Steimle did not know who was concerned. Kaltenbrunner made his decisions in an extremely hasty and superficial manner and Steimle indignantly turned to me regarding the frivolity of the procedure. I assumed that Kaltenbrunner had ordered a number of executions because if evacuation would have been ordered, there wouldn't have been talk about frivolity of the procedure.
Schellenberg suggested to Himmler in March or April 1945, that the V-weapon factories in concentration camps shouldn't be destroyed, but to surrender installations, located in Thuringia properly to the advancing American Army. Himmler agreed to it. As I was informed by Schellenberg in September 1945 at an internment camp in England on the occasion of a walk, Kaltenbrunner frustrated this, by obtaining a contradictory order directly from Hitler.
That the facts stated above are true; that the declaration is made by me voluntarily and without compulsion; that after reading over the statement, I have signed and executed the same.
[Signed] Martin Sandberger Oberursel, 19th of November 1945
Subscribed and sworn to before me at Oberursel/Germany this 19th day of November 1945.
[signed] Rudolf Urbach '
RUDOLF URBACH, Captain, AUS
773
Affidavit concerning Kaltenbrunner's decisions which prisoners should be moved or executed in February 1945, and the destruction of rocket installations at the end of the war
Authors
Martin Sandberger (commander of kommando 1a in Einsatzgruppe A; RSHA; SS and SD)
Martin Sandberger
SS officer (1911-2010)
- Born: 1911-08-17 (Charlottenburg)
- Died: 2010-03-30 (Stuttgart)
- Country of citizenship: German Empire; Germany; Nazi Germany; West Germany
- Occupation: jurist; police officer
- Member of political party: Nazi Party
- Member of: Schutzstaffel; Sturmabteilung
- Military branch: Schutzstaffel
- Employer: Gestapo
Date: 19 November 1945
Literal Title: Statement of Standartenfuehrer Martin Sandberger
Defendant: Ernst Kaltenbrunner
Total Pages: 1
Language of Text: English
Source of Text: Nazi conspiracy and aggression (Office of United States Chief of Counsel for Prosecution of Axis Criminality. Washington, D.C. : U.S. Government Printing Office, 1946.)
Evidence Code: PS-3838
HLSL Item No.: 451762
Document Summary
PS-3838: Affidavit by Martin Sandberger, formerly group leader in the Rsha, 19 November 1945, to the effect.that in february 1945 Kaltenbrunner ordered executions in an irresponsible manner; in March/april 1945 he was said to have thwarted efforts to hand over the V-weapon factories in the concentration camps to the advancing American army