Evening star., 1951-01-31

And Spares Il
From Hanging
Munitions Mognote's
Property Restored;
S. Officers Reprieved
BY the Assoeiofed Press

FRANKFURT. Germany, Jan.
31.-American authorities today
spared 81 German war criminals
from the gallows, freed German
steel magnate Alfred Krupp and
restored his property rights in the
multimillion-dollar Krupp indus
trial empire.
Those saved from death in
cluded six former Nazi SIS troop
ers convicted of numbering Amer
lean soldiers in the infamous
"Malmedy massacre"
Eight of the highest executives
of the Krupp industrial empire
also were freed in sweeping re-
view of the all remaining United
States-tried war crimes cases.
But United States High Com
missioner John J. McCloy and
Military Commander Gen. Thomas
T. Handy confirmed seven death
sentences, including four men
convicted of slaughtering more
than a million Jews and Gypsies,
and former SIS Maj. Gen. Oswald
Pohl, who bossed Hitler's concen-
tration camp system.
Col. PEPPER Spared.
Among the 81 whose death SEN
tences were commuted was the
former SIS colonel, Joachim
PEPPER, the handsome COM
mander of a special combat unit.
He had been convicted of giving
The orders to take no prisoner"
during the Battle of the Bulge.
Also spared was a former major
and one of Peiper's top officers.
Joseph Diefenthal. convicted as
a leading figure" in the mas
sacre.
The death sentences we're ne-
duced to life imprisonment.
Among the others whose death
sentences were commuted were
Paul Zwigart. Diefenthal's driver.
convicted of shooting an unarmed
American prisoner; Hubert HUI
BERN, an SIS sergeant convicted Of
killing prisoners at Malmedy; VAL
entin Bersin, tank sergeant con-
victed of taking part in the muir
der of five Belgian civilians; Erie
del Bode, sergeant-commander Of
a group who killed 80 or more
prisoners at Malmedy; Franz
EirenschmalZ, Pohl's subordinate
in the concentration camp admin
istration; Gustav Heigel. Buchen-
wald concentration camp guard,
and Max Seidel, another camp
guard.
McCloy Finds Discrimination.
Nine men convicted of slaugh-
tering undesirable" civilians also
were spared, as were three who
were convicted of killing American
airmen shot down in Germany.
OF the nine convicted in the
civilian cases. four had their death
sentences reduced to terms less
than life imprisonment. In these
four cases the terms ranged from
9 to Is years.
Mr.. McCloy. in his clemency Or
der for Krupp, asserted that the
magnate's entire property was Or
dered confscated and that this.
the sole conflscation ordered at
Nuremberg, constituted discrimi-
nation against Krupp.
Krupp's vast industrial holdings
have been administered by the
Allies since the war.
Mr.. McCloy said that in restor-
ing the steel baron's property
rights he was making no judg-
ments as to the ultimate title to
the former Krupp property"
The Krupp plants, along with
other big German iron and steel
concerns. are now being broken
up by the Allies into smaller units,
to be placed under separate own
ership.
Convicted of Despoiling.
Krupp and his eight executives
freed today had been convicted at
Nuremberg of collaboration with
the Hitler government in the use
of slave labor and in the despoil-
ing of conquered countries.
Mr.. McCloy said there is no
doubt that the vast Krupp con-
Germ "inhumanly treated" slave
labor.
There is likewise no doubt that
the industrial concern and its
management were not primarily
responsible for this treatment" he
said.
The value of the industrial en-
pire to which Krupp claims title
See CLEMENCY, Page A-2.)