Franz Paul Stangl
Born in Austria, Franz Stangl developed a liking for criminal investigations at a very young age. When he became of age, he joined the Austrian police force and worked in a political division for the CID. By 1940, his ideals had been set and his mind was fixated on joining the Nazi party. He became the Police Superintendent of the Euthanaisa Institute, which was known for captivating the mentally & physical handicapped as well as political prisoners. The institute served as a buffer zone where people were on a waiting list for the gallows.
By 1942, Paul Stangl was put in charge of the Sobibor death camp and during his tenure, he was responsible for the killings of almost 100,000 Jews. This was a seriously sick individual who had been able to murder so many people in only 6 months. In September, he was transferred to Treblinka, another camp, where Stangl established his reputation as an anti-sematic fanatic. He even received recognition for his work as the “best camp commander in Poland”. He murdered hundreds of thousands of Jews while working at the camp.
He had devoid himself of all emotions when dealing with camps and referred to inmates as “cargo to be dispatched”. In 1943, he was sent to Italy to oversee the construction of a project that involved almost half million Italian workers. The project was still underway when Germany surrendered and Stangl was captured by the Americans. He managed to get away from captivity as he was switched between different authorities and it wasn’t until 1967 that he was captured by a Nazi-hunter in Brazil. He was extradited to Germany for the murder of over 900,00 Jews at Treblinka, sentenced to life in prison on 22nd October 1970.