Former concentration camp guard returns to Germany
By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
An 83-year-old woman who admitted she had served as a guard at a concentration camp during World War II was deported to Germany, federal officials said.
Prosecutors would not say Tuesday how they learned about Elfriede Rinkel, but a department spokeswoman said investigators routinely compare guard rosters and other Nazi documents to US immigration records.
Rinkel admitted in court documents that she worked as a prison guard at the Ravensbrueck camp near Furstenberg from June 1944 until the camp was abandoned by the Nazi government in April 1945. According to the US Department of Justice, she worked with an SS-trained attack dog but was not a member of the Nazi party.
"Concentration camp guards such as Elfriede Rinkel played a vital role in the Nazi regime's horrific mistreatment of innocent victims," said Alice Fisher, a Justice Department lawyer. "This case reflects the government's unwavering commitment to remove Nazi persecutors from this country."