ZYTA TOMASZYK

Warsaw, 4 April 1945

Testimony

Zyta Tomaszyk, b. 2 November 1928 in Mikuliczyn, residing at Skaryszewska Street 6, flat 9.

On 20 August 1944, I was captured during the evacuation of Praga at Skaryszewska Street 6, where I lived with my elderly grandma, aged 67. My grandma was not taken. Together with all the residents of Skaryszewska Street, I was put on a train and transported to Pruszków. All the families were taken then.

After three days, together with a group of men, women, and children, I was transported from Pruszków to Stutthof. We were issued half a kilo of bread per person and our journey lasted three days, during which we received no food at all.

At Stutthof, we waited for a week before we were transported to other camps. There were some escapes, and whenever it happened, the Germans executed ten or more people for each escaped prisoner, and did that in public, so we could all see. The Germans ordered a few prisoners to dig a huge grave by the fence. Ten men from the group of the escaped prisoner were selected and taken away. They were brought with their hands tied. An SS unit surrounded the entire camp. The prisoners were executed individually, fired at from rifles. After the execution, prisoners were told to bury the corpses and we were ordered back to the barracks.

During each attempted escape, all the camp prisoners were taken to the yard and we had to stand there for a few hours, until the fugitive was found.

From Stutthof, I was taken to a Todt Organization camp, where I worked until 23 January 1945. In the final days, the guards escaped and we wandered around the neighborhood until we came across the Red Army.

On 29 February, I returned to Warsaw on a train from Bydgoszcz.

I have testified truthfully. I have read the testimony before signing it.