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Testimony of: Walenty Lenarczyk, Inmate No. 39272 at Dachau, formerly of Warszawa,
Grzybowska 72, Poland.
Taken at: Dachau, Germany.
Date: 11 May 1945. By: Lt. Col. J. M. Whitaker, IGD,
Asst. Inspector General, Seventh Army.
Interpreter: Anton Zlotorzysnki, Inmate No.
22393, at Dachau.
(IG Note: This witness was present while Okrutnik, No. 39455, gave his account. In addition to confirming such statement, he further told the following):
402 After this shooting prisoners swarmed over the wire and grabbed the American soldiers and lifted them to their shoulders amid many cries. I helped to lift the soldiers. I did not notice their helmets whether there were any marks of rank on their helmets. During this celebration there must have been 100, maybe 200 of the camp prisoners at this tower surrounding these Americans, boosting them up. All that could were crowding in to kiss their hands and clothes, amid many cries. At this time four German SS guards ran. It is impossible to say where they came from but they ran across the front in the direction the Americans had been proceeding, and it was impossible for the Americans to shoot them because they were surrounded with camp prisoners. And, while this was going on, other prisoners caught the SS men and killed them. The SS men were always proud as the crowd of prisoners closed around them they would go through. The first SS man elbowed one or two prisoners out of his way, but the courage of the prisoners mounted, they knocked them down and nobody could see because of the great group whether they were stomped or what, but they were killed. All we could think about were Americans. For the past six years we had waited for the Americans, and at this moment the SS were nothing. We were all these years, animals to them and it was our second birthday. It was ordered by Himmler that the SS kill all prisoners before the Americans come, and so when they came fast it was truly our second birthday. The order from Himmler for out death was written.