On 29 September 1947 in Kraków, acting judge, Associate Judge Franciszek Wesely, delegated to work in the Kraków District Commission for the Investigation of German Crimes, upon written request of the First Prosecutor of the Supreme National Tribunal, this dated 25 April 1947 (file no. NTN 719/47), in accordance with the provisions of and procedure provided for under the Decree of 10 November 1945 (Journal of Laws of the Republic of Poland No. 51, item 293) and in conjunction with Articles 254, 107 and 115 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, interviewed the person mentioned below as a witness, who testified as follows:
Name and surname | Dr. Jan Reyman |
Date and place of birth | 20 October 1902, Kraków |
Parents’ names | Władysław and Franciszka, née Czerna |
Citizenship and nationality | Polish |
Religious affiliation | Roman Catholic |
Marital status | married |
Education | PhD in chemistry |
Place of residence | [...] in Kraków |
Testifies freely |
On 30 May 1942, I was transferred to KL Auschwitz I from the Montelupich prison in Kraków. As a political prisoner, I was assigned number 37302. I stayed in Auschwitz until the very end, that is 18 January 1945.
Since I had a PhD in chemistry, in January 1943 I was assigned to block 10, where the laboratory of the Hygiene Institute in Rajsko was first situated. Then in May 1943, I was transferred to work in Rajsko, but I still lived in block 20. During that period, I met defendant Dr. Hans Wilhelm Münch, who came to Auschwitz with the rank of private more or less at the beginning of 1944. Münch was a person who remarkably differed from other SS men. He was the deputy of Dr. Weber, who was the head of the Hygiene Institute and a great enemy of Polish people. Dr. Münch carried out research on rheumatism. As a chemist, I often made preparations for those experiments. I do not know if Dr. Münch carried out scientific research that was harmful for the health of prisoners. In Rajsko, no research was performed which could have had negative repercussions on the health and life of prisoners. I know, however, that Weber co-operated with doctors who carried out experiments in block 10. It is impossible that Dr. Münch co-operated with the doctors in block 10.
Dr. Münch was very kind and he helped prisoners as much as he could. In particular, he often supplied the prisoners employed in Rajsko with food and medicines. He provided them with medical assistance when they were sick, and he visited them in the hospital. He often intervened in the so-called “sports activities” or when prisoners were beaten, and his interventions were always effective, that is the prisoners were no longer beaten or the “sports activities” were stopped. Many times, when I informed Dr. Münch that SS men wanted to organise “sports activities” for us, he interrupted his work and intervened. I know that Dr. Münch saved the life of Professor Mansfeld from Budapest, who was sick and destined for a gas chamber. I also know that Dr. Münch intervened in the case of Professor Jakubski from the University of Poznań, whose life was in danger, because he exchanged letters with a female prisoner from block 10, a friend of his daughter. I must emphasize that Dr. Münch forbade “sports activities”, although Dr. Weber, the head of the Institute, allowed them. SS men organizing “sports activities” in Rajsko were equally ruthless as those in other parts of the camp. Additionally, prisoners were forced to hold poles in their outstretched hands while squatting, as a result of which their arms became numb and the prisoners collapsed from exhaustion. During the evacuation of the camp on 18 January 1945, Dr. Münch gave us, that is prisoners employed in Rajsko, food, medicines, and three bottles of vodka in case someone collapsed.
On 25 September 1947, I recognized, from among the SS men in the Central Prison in Kraków, suspect Hans Aumeier, the former Lagerführer [camp leader] of the main camp. He was an awful scoundrel who persecuted and harassed prisoners without any reason. Each time our group employed in Rajsko passed by Aumeier, he would jump at us and hit a random prisoner in the face or kick him. I know only from other inmates that Aumeier carried out executions and the so-called “shoot-outs” [execution by shooting].
At this point the hearing and the report were concluded. The report was read out and signed.