The ominous entrance sign (“Arbeit Macht Frei” = “Work will set you free”) to the former Nazi death camp of Auschwitz has been recovered by police:
The metal sign had been cut into three parts, apparently to make it easier to transport.
The arrest late Sunday night came after more than 100 tips, said Rokita.
Deputy investigator Marek Wozniczka said the suspects would be charged with stealing an object of special cultural value, and could face up to 10 years in prison. He said other charges could be added during the investigation.
Auschwitz Museum authorities welcomed the news with relief, despite the damage. Spokesman Pawel Sawicki said authorities hope to rehang the sign as soon as it can be repaired.
An exact replica of the sign, produced when the original underwent restoration years ago, was hung in its place Friday.
Rabbi Marvin Hier, founder and dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, welcomed the sign’s swift recovery.
“Whatever the motivation, it takes warped minds to steal the defining symbol of the Holocaust from the world’s most renowned killing field,” he said.
The chairman of Yad Vashem, Israel’s official Holocaust memorial, expressed relief.
“The theft of the sign, which had become a symbol both of the ultimate evil that found its expression in Auschwitz, and of the memory of the Shoah – Jewish Holocaust – gave pain to Holocaust survivors and people of conscience everywhere,” Avner Shalev said in a statement.
Only by learning from the past can we ensure a brighter future.
Update: Police now suspect the theft was commissioned from abroad.
– Gautam Dutta
