Charles Zentai

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Charles Zentai , born as Károly Steiner (* October 8, 1921 , † December 13, 2017 ) was a Hungarian- Australian war criminal. After the Second World War he emigrated to Australia . Until 2013, Zentai was on the list of the most wanted war criminals at the Simon Wiesenthal Center .

Murder charge

Zentai served in the Hungarian Army as a reserve officer . He is accused of having murdered the 18-year-old Jew Péter Balázs on November 8, 1944 in this capacity. Balázs did not wear the yellow Star of David while traveling on the tram , which was punishable by death as a crime . Witnesses told the Simon Wiesenthal Center that Zentai had forcibly forced Balázs to leave a tram, then took him to an army barracks, where he was beaten and tortured for five hours. Balázs eventually succumbed to his injuries. Zentai then disposed of the body in the Danube. After the war he first lived in the French and American zones of occupation in Germany before emigrating to Australia, where he lived as a pensioner until 2005.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center determined the whereabouts of Zentai in Australia under his new name and now wanted to use his commitment to ensure that he had to answer before a Hungarian military court . Especially Efraim Zuroff , director of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, campaigned for Zentai's conviction.

Zentai later admitted listening to the fascists but denies the murder allegations. He left Budapest the day before the murder.

Arrest and legal battle

Since 2005, the zentai , who lives in Perth, has been officially wanted by his native Hungary for war crimes. On July 8, 2005, Zentai was arrested by the Australian Federal Police. The Hungarian judiciary applied for his extradition so that he could be tried in Budapest .

Since his arrest, Zentai has fought such extradition in Australian courts. In 2012, the High Court of Australia ruled in the last instance in favor of Zentai and thus against extradition. The court based its decision on the fact that a war crime did not exist in Hungary at the time of the crime.

Media processing

Following his arrest in Australia, the Zentai case sparked a discussion about the country's role as a refuge for Nazi war criminals. If Zentai had to answer before a court in Hungary, this would be the first case in which a Nazi criminal accused in Australia would have to answer before a foreign court. In Hungary, too, the case drew attention to Hungary's complicity in Nazi war crimes.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c György Vámos: Murder on Arena Avenue: Is Charles Zentai Guilty? In: The Monthly. March 2009, No. 43
  2. ^ Nazi suspect Charles Zentai wins Australia extradition case. BBC, August 15, 2012.
  3. ^ Charles Zentai suing for unlawful jailing damages over extradition bid
  4. ↑ Australian court decides for old Nazis. Suspected war criminal is not extradited. In: Focus. August 15, 2012.
  5. ↑ Late Justice. ( Memento of October 2, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) In: Pester Lloyd. March 17, 2009.
personal data
SURNAME Zentai, Charles
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Steiner, Károly (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Hungarian-Australian war criminal
DATE OF BIRTH October 8, 1921
DATE OF DEATH December 13, 2017