The Kastner Document

This is a copy of an undated U.S. military report of the interrogation of a Hungarian chauffeur on the activities of Rudolf Kastner, the Hungarian Zionist leader who worked with the SS in the deportation and death of more than 400,000 Jews in 1944. The subject, Stefan Vadasan, details Kastner's leading role in acquiring a fortune in ransoms from the Jews and pocketing the money in a partnership with SS Col. Kurt Becher.

The following is the text of the documents, typos and all, found in the U.S. National Archives. RG 226, Entry 108A, Box 280. Rudolf Schwarz, Bandi Gross, Gefronrner were Nazi agents who delivered money for the Jewish Agency and Joint Distribution Committee. Joel Brand, his wife Hansi [known as Mrs. Brandt], Laszlo Szantho, Byesz, Offenbach were members of the Kastner-led Budapest Rescue Committee, which worked with the SS throughout 1944. Kurt Becher is referred to as BECKER. These documents were obtained in the course of research for the book "In Jewish Blood: The Zionist Alliance with Germany, 1933-1963," co-authored by Elly Sinclair and published by Amazon.

Secret Control

1. Stefan VADASAN was a driver for Rudolf SCHWARZ from 18 February 1944 until the middle of May 1944. SCHWARZ had then a small Lancia with a Viennese number plate. Subject drove for SCHWARZ for four weeks. After that SCHWARZ travelled to Vienna and left him as a driver for Bandi GROSS and Laszlo SZANTHO, as they were friends of his employer. During these three weeks, Subject drove them to restaurants and bars and in the evenings to the house of BRANDT. In this manner Subject made the acquaintance of the Joel BRANDT household and also with Dr. KASTNER and Ing. BYESZ.

2. After the arrest of SCHWARZ, Subject kept the car. After a few days, bandi GROSS came with an employee of the Gestapo, took the key from him and instructed him to report by telephone every other day and to ask whether there were any repairs to be made. During one of his visits at the headquarters of the Gestapo at Schwabenberg, Subject saw KASTNER and Mrs. Brandt who frequented the headquarters regularly. He was given the car once to make a trip to Siofok to get food for a certain GENTZ (the successor to GEFRORNER), and when he returned to Budapest, his car was finally taken away by the Gestapo and driven to Vienna. After that SZANTHO came to him and proposed that he work for the Joint. From the end of June until the entry of the Russians into Budapest, Subject worked for the Joint.

3. After BRANDT left for Turkey, KASTNER played the main role in the Joint. At that time, the Jews began to be deported and concentrated in houses marked with the Star of David. KASTNER avoided as much contact as possible with the other Jews, received a Studebaker with a Berlin number plate and a German chauffeur. With this car he travelled very often to Bregenz and to Germany in the company of a German Major of the Sonderstab BECKER. In the meantime, KASTNER established the camp at the Columbus utca with was guarded by SS troops and which was destined to house those Jews who were to be transported to Switzerland. Subject emphasizes that only those Jews who had contributed enormous sums for their emigration were taken into this camp. Entrance to the camp was only permitted with a permit signed by KASTNER or Mrs. BRANDT. The first transport arrived in Montreux, Switzerland but the relatives of Mrs. BRANDT were kept behind in Bergen-Belsen. The second transport, which also contained the family of KASTNER, was kept back in Bergen-Belsen also. Telegrams poured in from Switzerland explaining that the money had already been paid for the transport and asking for reasons why the transport had not been sent away. KASTNER came back from Germany and explained that the Germans wanted more money before releasing it. KASTNER disappeared again to Germany and then went to Switzerland to explain the situation.

4. The other people involved (OFFENBACH, Mrs. BRANDT, BYESZ and SZANTHO) said that KASTNER was quite a big operator and that he certainly was not paying those sums to the Germans but had a bank account in Switzerland with the German Major as a partner. Relations between KASTNER and BYESZ became worse and finally KASTNER left Budapest and did not bother with the transport business any more. The people who stayed at the camp of the Columbus utca, and who constituted the third transport after having paid enormous sums, were left to themselves. The SS guard was taken away, and as KASTNER was not there any more, the Arrow Cross people deported all the camp inmates. Subject heard then that KASTNER had paid the Germans either three or thirteen million Swiss francs and that the entire transaction had been arranged by SALY MAYER in St. Gall.

5. The only person left in Budapest was BYESZ who exchanged false dollars and pound sterlings for the members of the Sonderstab BECKER. BYESZ, who was a poor devil before, bought himself a Buick from the Germans for 20,000 Swiss francs four weeks later.

6. After the entry of the Russians in Budapest Subject left for Bucharest and met BYESZ and SZANTHO there. From them he heard that they wanted to leave for Switzerland where they had a large amount of money deposited in various banks.