The Devil's Agent Quotes

“Barbie’s sense of security was broken once again on March 2, 1973 when he was summoned to the Superior Court of La Paz to respond to questions about his true identity. He avoided confirming that he was Klaus Barbie but provided a great deal of information about his past that corroborated his real identity. A summary of the transcript of Barbie’s interrogation by the court stated: Question: Are you the person who under the name of Klaus Altmann or Klaus Barbie was the chief of the SS in Lyon and who is also the same person who has been judged by the Military Tribune of Lyon? Answer: That’s a difficult question to answer . . . because I am not aware of the Lyon trial. I was never asked or called, nor had any news. I admit having used this name during the war, as well as various others, but I can’t answer the last question. Question: To what do you attribute the extraordinary similarity in your personal description, in your dates of identity, in the names of your family members, in the dates of birth and many other dates, between two persons called Altmann and Barbie? Answer: These points which you have just made have appeared in numerous publications, and for me it is just a matter of pure coincidence, because you have, for example, I don’t know how many Klauses—it’s a very common name—and it’s a nice trap for me. After the interrogation, Barbie was whisked away to the San Pedro jail located in downtown La Paz to await a decision by Bolivian Supreme Court on the French government’s extradition request. During the eight months he was imprisoned, he received regular visits from his family, attorney, and friends and was able to continue carrying out his business activities. He was assigned to La Posta, a section of the jail where political detainees and drug traffickers were held if they paid hefty rental fees for private rooms and baths as well as televisions. He was also provided access to a phone, which allowed him to continue his business activities, coordinate his defense, and keep in touch with family members and friends. When Barbie was released from the San Pedro jail, he told reporters, “I feel very happy. I have confidence in Bolivian justice” (Murphy 1983). After his stint in jail, Barbie was treated for a mild heart condition and moved with his wife, Regine, and son, Klaus Georg, to the city of Cochabamba to await a decision by the Supreme Court on the extradition request. Barbie could not have imagined that he would return to the San Pedro jail in January 1983 when he was detained for an old debt before being expelled and flown to France to face trial for crimes against humanity.”
― Peter McFarren, The Devil's Agent: Life, Times and Crimes of Nazi Klaus Barbie