Hans Kammler circa 1932
Hans Kammler circa 1932Wikimedia Commons

According to history books SS General Hans Kammler, a founder of the Nazi death camp Auschwitz, committed suicide on May 9, 1945, a day after the Third Reich surrendered. But a new German investigative documentary reveals evidence that the senior Nazi official was in fact spirited away to the US for his knowledge of advanced rocket technology.

Kammler designed the crematoria in Auschwitz, where 1.2 million Jews were murdered by the genocidal Nazi machine. A documentary on German ZDF TV argues that his horrific crimes led the US to fake his suicide, creating a new identity for the Nazi missile expert.

"The whole history of suicide is staged," Berlin historian Rainer Karlsch said in the documentary, reports Daily Mail. "There are several documents that clearly demonstrate that Kammler was captured by the Americans."

The SS general helped develop the Nazi’s most advanced weapons technology, including the V1 and V2 rockets that inflicted great damage in Britain, but were developed too late to affect the war's outcome.

By the end of the war, Kammler held a similar status as SS Chief Heinrich Himmler and armaments Minister Albert Speer. His body was never found after his alleged suicide, which supposedly occurred either by shooting or taking poison.

"This whole story of suicide was staged by two of his closest aides who were committed to him," argues Karlsch.

Matthias Uhl of the German Historical Institute in Moscow added that "the reports from America are more credible than those given about the alleged suicide by Kammler’s associates."

Testimony from the sons of Kammler's handler

After World War II, America and Russia reportedly competed to secure top Nazi scientists, in an effort to advance their weapons programs ahead of the Cold War. For this purpose, America's covert Operation Paperclip was launched.

"Sources say that Kammler was captured by the Americans and interrogated by the US Counter-Intelligence Corps (CIC). The secret service man responsible was Donald Richardson, a personal confidant of allied supreme commander General Dwight D Eisenhower," reports the documentary.

Richardson's sons revealed to the program that their father was indeed tasked with taking care of Kammler after 1945.

"This engineer brought a special treasure from the Third Reich into the United States. He offered modern weapons for us," said John Richardson, one of the sons. "It was put to my father that he should bring this 'useful' German into the United States to prevent him from falling into the hands of the Russian intelligence service."

The documentary did not reveal what alias Kammler lived under or when he died. It did note material from the archives referencing a "special guest" living under Richardson's protection.