VZCZCXYZ0008
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHMZ #0062/01 0791517
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 201517Z MAR 09
FM AMCONSUL MUNICH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4694
RHEFHLC/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
INFO RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN IMMEDIATE 3412

C O N F I D E N T I A L MUNICH 000062 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EUR/CE, L/LEI - KPROPP, JUSTICE FOR OSI - 
EROSENBAUM, HOMELAND SECURITY FOR ICE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/21/2019 
TAGS: GM OPDC PREL
SUBJECT: THE PROSECUTION OF JOHN DEMJANJUK 
 
REF: A) SECSTATE 22883 AND B) EMAIL OF MARCH 18 OF 
     MEDICAL REPORT 
 
Classified By: Consul General Eric Nelson for reasons 1.4 b and d 
 
¶1.  (C) Summary:  Consulate General Munich and Embassy Berlin 
have actively pursued Washington goals with regard to the 
removal to Germany and prosecution of John Demjanjuk by 
German authorities.  The German Federal Government has agreed 
to act on the arrest warrant issued by the Munich State 
Prosecutor, and we understand that action rests at present 
with Washington agencies, in coordination with the German 
Embassy.  This cable outlines the principal steps taken by 
Mission Germany in response to Washington instructions.  End 
summary. 
 
¶2. (C)  On March 11, Acting Consul General Traub at ConGen 
Munich spoke with Dr. Hans-Joachim Lutz, public prosecutor 
section chief ("Staatsanwalt als Gruppenleiter") regarding 
the prosecution of John Demjanjuk.  Lutz is the lead 
prosecutor in this case.  He said that his office had just 
issued an arrest warrant for John Demjanjuk following a long 
investigation.  The March 11 press release of the 
Prosecutor's Office follows at paragraph 8.  We spoke with 
Prosecutor Lutz again on March 12 to follow up on this news 
and to share with him the points from REFTEL.  Lutz warmly 
appreciated the offers of support from Washington and ConGen 
Munich.  He confirmed that he planned to travel to Washington 
on March 31 to meet counterparts regarding this case.  We 
reiterated that it is very important from Washington,s 
perspective that the German authorities move as quickly as 
possible to do what is necessary to open the door for 
Demjanjuk to travel to Germany.  Lutz replied that the matter 
was now out of the hands of the Munich Prosecutors, Office 
since their warrant was with the Federal Ministries of 
Interior, Justice, and Foreign Affairs for processing.  He 
expressed the view that Washington would know what is 
happening faster than he would.  He added that it was his 
understanding that the German Federal Cabinet could take a 
final decision on the matter either "next week or in two 
weeks." 
 
¶3.  (C) Separately, we raised the case with Michael 
Hoehenberger, Policy Planning Chief at the Bavarian 
Staatskanzlei, during a meeting on other matters on March 12. 
He was not aware that Munich had issued the arrest warrant 
and agreed that the matter was very important for Bavaria for 
legal, moral, and historic reasons.  On his own initiative, 
he later raised the matter with Bavarian Minister of Justice 
Beate Merk, who is bureaucratically the senior responsible 
official for the Munich Prosecutor,s office.   He told us 
later that Merk had expressed her &full support8 for the 
course the Munich prosecutors were taking and that the United 
States should not hesitate to contact her if there were 
something she could do to support the matter. 
 
¶4.  (C) Berlin Political Minister-Counselor consulted with 
the Legal Department of the Federal Foreign Office on March 
12 and 13 for updates on interagency discussions between the 
Foreign Office and Interior Ministry on the Demjanjuk arrest 
warrant.  Those updates were shared with Washington agencies 
by e-mail.  The Foreign Office informed the Embassy March 13 
on an informal basis that German authorities agreed to allow 
Demjanjuk to enter Germany and that the German Embassy in 
Washington would be the official channel of communication 
with USG agencies on further steps.  Mission Germany has kept 
informal channels of communication open with the Germans both 
in Berlin and Munich. 
 
¶5.  (C) Two issues were noted to Embassy Berlin as topics of 
German interagency discussion:  a) what kind of American 
travel document would serve as the basis for admitting 
Demjanjuk into Germany; and b) what would happen if Demjanjuk 
were brought to Germany but then were found incapable of 
standing trial or were acquitted.  (Note: Acting Consul 
General Traub floated the last point on March 13 with 
Hoehenberger when he called.  He quickly replied that Germany 
&had a moral obligation to deal with this issue.8  What 
would happen to Demjanjuk after an acquittal or if he could 
not stand trial should be a question for another day, he 
suggested.  End Note.) 
 
¶6.  (C)  On March 18, Munich Prosecutor Lutz sent the 
Consulate a copy of a medical report from Demjanjuk,s doctor 
in Ohio (REFEMAIL scanned and forwarded by email to DOS, DOJ, 
and DHS/ICE representative in Frankfurt the same day.)  In an 
effort to stay coordinated, ConGen Pol/Econ officer will have 
a courtesy call with Prosecutor Lutz on March 23 to thank him 
for his cooperation to date. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Embassy Berlin and Consulate General Munich have 
discussed a media approach for this case and are prepared to 
team with DOS, DOJ, and DHS on a coordinated press line when 
the removal happens.  This will be a high-profile case in 
Germany. 
 
¶8.  (U) BEGIN TEXT OF TRANSLATION OF PRESS RELEASE FROM THE 
MUNICH PROSECUTORS OFFICE 
 
Munich, March 11, 2009 
 
The Senior Public Prosecutor 
Munich I 
 
Preliminary Proceedings against John DEMJANJUK for Assisted 
Murder 
 
Press Release of the Prosecutor's Office of Munich I 
 
On March 10, 2009, upon the request of the Prosecutor's 
Office of Munich I, the investigative judge of the Munich 
Local Court ordered an arrest warrant against the defendant 
John DEMJANJUK.  There is strong suspicion that the defendant 
served as a guard from 3/27/1943 until late September 1943 at 
the extermination camp of Sobibor (now Poland) and that in 
this capacity he assisted the murder of at least 29,000 
persons of the Jewish faith. 
 
The request to order an arrest warrant became possible after 
the U.S. "Office of Special Investigations" provided the 
identity card No. 1393, the authenticity of which was 
examined by the Bavarian Land Criminal Office.  In a written 
expertise, the office stated that the identity card matched 
the sample material and was therefore authentic. 
 
The defendant currently still lives in the U.S.  Further 
investigations will follow in order to adequately prepare 
expected court proceedings. 
 
The federal government has been informed about the arrest 
warrant.  The next steps of the Prosecutor's Office of Munich 
I will be in close coordination with the federal government. 
 
As soon as the defendant is in Germany, it is planned to 
arraign the defendant and presumably charge him before the 
jury of the Land Court Munich II for assisted murder in 
29,000 cases. 
 
(signed) Noetzel 
 
¶9.  (U)  Consulate General Munich and Embassy Berlin 
coordinated on this cable. 
NELSON