Shot in their pajamas by Hitler’s death squads: Gruesome ‘unique’ mass grave containing more than 100 psychiatric patients rounded up and executed by the Nazis is discovered in Poland

By William On May 29, 2024

The remains of more than a hundred psychiatric patients murdered by the Nazis during the Second World War have been found in a mass grave in Poland.

The grisly discovery was made in fields near the town of Chojnice in an area archaeologists call Death Valley because of the high number of wartime executions of civilians in the area.

According to researchers, the newly discovered victims came from a nearby psychiatric hospital and were shot by German officers in late October 1939.

Lead archaeologist Dawid Kobialka described the discovery as ‘unique’ and ‘one of a kind’, telling MailOnline: ‘This is the first archaeological discovery of a mass grave of mentally disabled people murdered by the Nazis in 1939 as part of the T-4 . Action.

‘We know they were only murdered in their pajamas, only buttons were found in the grave, no other personal belongings, plus shell casings and bullets.

‘So far we have been able to excavate half of the grave. According to historical records, 218 people were executed in a few days and their bodies were hidden in a mass grave.”

The gruesome discovery was made in fields near the town of Chojnice in an area archaeologists call Death Valley.

“We know they were killed only in pajamas, only buttons were found in the grave, no other personal belongings, plus shell casings and bullets,” the chief archaeologist said.

The photo shows Nazi death squads executing Polish civilians in October 1939

The first adults with disabilities to be murdered en masse were Poles executed by the SS

He added: ‘Mentally handicapped people were murdered in several places in Pomerania in 1939. Almost all these places were destroyed in the second half of 1944.

‘When the Germans dug up the graves and bodies, among other things, they burned mentally ill people.

‘At the moment this is the only known grave that has been preserved. It is something unique, one-of-a-kind, of exceptional importance for the city and region.’

Aktion T-4, started in October 1939, was Adolf Hitler’s solution for dealing with people considered ‘terminally ill’.

The campaign of mass murder, euphemistically called “involuntary euthanasia,” began in Nazi Germany but was quickly introduced into Nazi-occupied Poland after Hitler’s invasion of the country in September 1939.

The first adults with disabilities to be murdered en masse were Poles executed by the SS.

In October 1939, Nazi death squads are seen shooting Polish civilians

Forensic archaeologists study the remains

The remains of more than 100 psychiatric patients murdered by the Nazis during World War II

The director of the Main Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes Against the Polish Nation, Deputy Prosecutor General Andrzej Pozorski, said: “On some skulls we found entrances and exits for bullets due to the firearms used.

‘We cannot yet say exactly how many remains have been revealed as work is still ongoing and the process of extracting human remains has not yet been completed.

“The evidence shows that they were brought here in late October 1939, shot, the bodies buried and the area razed so that no one would discover this criminal activity.”

Dr. Karol Nawrocki of the Institute of National Remembrance, which investigates Nazi and Soviet-era crimes in Poland, added: “This terrifying crime and today’s discovery are also proof that here, in Pomerania, in the Chojnice region, but also throughout Poland, there are still remains of people waiting to be found and commemorated, to return to the national consciousness.

“This discovery is also proof that despite the pages of books full of facts and despite the actions of the IPN prosecutor’s office, we are still talking about a crime that has not yet been recovered.

‘The Institute for National Remembrance recognizes that Poland is still entitled to reparations from the German state.’