For a brief period of time in August 1941, the prison ceased to operate. German forces occupied Tallinn on 28 August 1941 after the Soviet evacuation of Tallinn. By 28 August, there were no prisoners in Patarei apart from a small number of persons left in the prison hospital. All local penal institutions (including Patarei) and police authorities went under the control of the new occupying regime and the German Security Service (the SD).