German officials announced that a former medic will be on trial as an accessory to 3,861 murders at the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp. Hubert Zafke, 95, was employed in a camp for a short span of one month, spanning from August to September of 1944, a time where thousands perished.
Zafke was "aware of the purpose of the Birkenau camp as an extermination camp," the prosecutors of the case said, according to the Agence France-Presse. "Given his awareness, the accused lent support to the organisation of the camp and was thereby both involved in and advanced the extermination." Zafke has been reportedly suffering from dementia, according to the German press, but the court has deemed him fit to stand trial.
.@BBCWorld Hubert Zafke served at Auschwitz as well as Gross-Rosen, Sachsenhausen and Neuengamme camps. pic.twitter.com/tqAdjdQAhX
— Auschwitz Memorial (@AuschwitzMuseum) January 18, 2016
Zafke received able medical attention and care during his trial since the Neubrandenburg court recognizes the accused of having "cognitive impairments and low physical capacity," according to the Telegraph.
Anne Frank, one of the most known victims of the Holocaust, was sent to the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp as well. Zafke, according to records, would have been at the camp during her internment. In total, 1.1 million murders occurred at Auschwitz, where the majority of the victims were Jews.
In July 2015, the "book-keeper of Auschwitz," Oskar Gröning, was sentenced to prison for four years for playing a role in the Holocaust and facilitating close to 4,000 murders. Gröning was allegedly involved in computing bank notes that were taken from the Nazi's prisoners, according to the BBC.
