Mystery of missing WWII Warsaw mayor solved?
PR dla Zagranicy
Nick Hodge
10.09.2014 10:41
An investigation by the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) has concluded that former mayor of Warsaw Stefan Starzynski was shot by Nazi German Gestapo officers in the first few weeks of WWII.
Stefan Starzynski. Photo: wikipedia
The fate of the popular Warsaw mayor has eluded historians for decades, with various theories abounding on Starzynski's demise.
The state-backed Institute of National Remembrance made use of various German and Polish archives, the former accessed after permits were provided by German prosecutors.
According to the institute's findings, three Gestapo officers led by Oberscharfuehrer Hermann Schimmann carried out the execution of Starzynski between 21 and 23 October 1939.
The shooting most probably took place in Warsaw, or on the outskirts of the capital.
However, according to IPN prosecutor Marcin Golebiewicz, it has not been possible to clarify who gave the order to execute the mayor.
Starzynski's body has never been recovered, although a memorial was erected in Warsaw's Powazki Cemetery in 1957.
Several earlier theories suggested that Starzynski had been held in concentration camps in Germany, and one hypothesised that he was still alive until the 1 August 1944 outbreak of the Warsaw Rising against the occupiers, when several other high-ranking Polish prisoners were executed by the Germans. (nh)
Source: PAP/IAR