Murder Story of Velizh Jews on the Bank of the Velizhka River in Velizh

May 15, 1959: The Germans caught the Jews who had escaped from the camp [the ghetto] to the town and shot them. Thus, on the second or the third day after the camp had been liquidated a group of policemen of about 11 or 12 people, including me, … went to catch those Jews who were hiding in the houses between Zhgutovskaya Street and the Velizhka River and also in houses on Bezymyannaya Street. While searching the houses, the four of us discovered about eleven Jewish women and children. We took them across a field to the bridge where the rest of the policemen from our group were supposed to be waiting for us. When we crossed the Velizhka River, together with the Jews we climbed the steep bank. There were already many Jews who had been brought there by policemen from our group. In total, we brought around 100 Jews, mostly women and children, to the bank of the Velizhka River. There were only a few men among them. Having brought all the Jews to the edge of the river bank, the [above] mentioned policemen, me included, opened fire on the Jews from the weapons that we had. The bodies of the Jews shot fell from the edge of the bank [into the river?]. In the course of an hour we shot all the Jews, about 100 of them, and then went to the [police] barracks.

July 2, 1959: After we escaped from the ghetto during its liquidation, my mother and I spent the night somewhere, I don't remember the place. The following afternoon some policemen we didn't know caught us and took us to some house. I cannot say what street the house was on, but I remember that it was not far from the ghetto. Other Jews who had also been caught were taken there to that house by some other policemen I didn't know. Thus, about 30 people were collected. After two or three days several policemen came and ordered everyone in the house to go outside, and then they took them to a trench. It was somewhere in the area of the Velizhka River. At the trench everyone was stopped and forced to undress and their valuables were taken from them. … I heard shooting at the trench where the Jews had been taken.