The infamous Jewish labour camp commandant Amon Goeth, who became widely known through the Oscar winning movie Schindler’s List was charged by the NAZI’s for the way he ran the camp and how he treated the prisoners. It is commonly known that the treatment of Jews by Germans during World War 2 was disgraceful and criminal, so Amon Goeth being charged for the way he ran the camp would come as a surprise to many.
On 13 September 1944 Goeth was relieved of his command of Plaszow camp and subsequently charged by the SS for the theft of Jewish property. The SS didn’t have the concerns of Jews in mind while charging him for the theft, Amon was charged with theft because the Jews property belonged to the state, so he was stealing from Germany. Amon Goeth was also charged with failing to provide enough food for his prisoners, violating regulations regarding the treatment and punishment of his prisoners, and allowing unauthorised access to camp personnel records by prisoners and non-commissioned officers. He was due to stand trial before an SS judge, but with the progress of the war the charges were dropped in early 1945. He was then sent to a mental institution by SS doctors who diagnosed him as having a mental illness.
Amon Goeth was captured by United States forces in May 1945 and extradited to Poland for his war crimes trial. He was hanged on 13 September 1946 at Montelupich Prison in Kraków, not far from the site of the Płaszów camp he once ran. It took three attempts to hang him.
