Willi Falkenberg

Willi Falkenberg (born January 5, 1900 ; † August 12, 1968 in Düsseldorf ) was a German SS functionary and intelligence officer.

Life and activity

Falkenberg began to work in circles of the extreme political right after the First World War . Together with Hans Otto Bethke, he founded the National Socialist Comradeship Association “Mark” in Köpenick in September 1924. They joined them cooperatively to the paramilitary military association Frontbann-Nord . In July 1925, the Comradeship Association was dissolved and joined as Group 36 to the Frontbann Nord, which at that time was led by Paul Röhrbein .

In spring 1926, after the dissolution of the Frontbanns Nord, Falkenberg, like most of the members of this organization, joined the National Socialist Sturmabteilung (SA), which was first set up in Berlin at that time .

On February 23, 1926, Falkenberg founded the local NSDAP group in Berlin-Köpenick, which - according to Hördler - coincided with the establishment of Köpenicker SA in terms of time, space and personnel. Falkenberg became a member of the NSDAP at this time (membership number 33,766). Around 1930 he also became a member of the Schutzstaffel (SS) (SS No. 15.444).

In 1933 Falkenberg was district leader of the security service of the SS (SD) in Berlin with responsibility for district I / III. His office in this function was first in the Köpenicker Bahnhofstrasse and then in the Köpenick district court prison, which was also the staff position of the independent SA-Sturmbanns 15. In this way, he was directly involved in the events of the Köpenicker Blood Week in June 1933, during which more than twenty people were murdered by the Köpenicker SA and dozens more were abducted and severely mistreated. On July 1, 1933, he was promoted from SS-Sturmmann to SS-Untersturmführer, skipping several ranks.

In the summer of 1934, Falkenberg was involved in the Nazi government's political cleansing action, known as the Röhm Putsch . For his services in this context, he was promoted to SS-Obersturmführer.

From 1935 to 1937 Falkenberg was head of SD Section III (Greater Berlin) and thus head of the SD's intelligence operations in the area of ​​the Reich capital. In this position he made it to SS-Obersturmbannführer (January 30, 1937).

Falkenberg committed suicide in 1968 after the Berlin public prosecutor had contacted him and informed him that they had him in connection with the role of the Berlin SD during the murder of June 30th / 1st. July 1934 wanted to be heard by the Düsseldorf police.

literature

• George C. Browder : Hitler's Enforcers. The Gestapo and the SS Security Service in the Nazi Revolution. New York 1996.
• Stefan Hördler: Ideology, staging of power and excess: deeds and perpetrators of the “Köpenicker Blood Week”. In: Ders .: SA terror as security of rule. “Köpenicker Blood Week” and public violence under National Socialism. Berlin 2013, pp. 83-104, especially p. 96.