Murder story of Dobrush Jews in the Dobrush Grove

From the indictment against Albert Rapp: Four or five days before Passover, which fell on April 5 in 1942, the accused had issued an order to shoot at least 70 Jews from Dobrush and 7-8 Jews from a small village near Dobrush. The accused assigned ten men to carry out the operation.… The accused, who was subordinated to the local commandant, asked the latter why an additional shooting had to take place, given that the previous one had been carried out by Sonderkommando 8. The commandant suggested that the local auxiliary police make the necessary preparations for the shooting. On the following day, he supplied a horse-driven sleigh, in addition to 2-3 military policemen who would assist with the shooting operation. The accused, together with the firing squad, went out to a grove located north of Dobrush. At the edge of the grove, at least 70 Jews – men, women, and children – were being held in 2-3 houses guarded by the auxiliary policemen. The shooting pit had been dug near the houses. The accused instructed 4-5 members of the squad to carry out the shooting. The area was cordoned off by the German military police and the auxiliary police. The Jews were shot in the usual manner: in the back of the head, next to the pit.