Murder Story of Prozoroki Jews at the Marusino Farm

Early in the morning, the village elder came and ordered me to come to the crossroads with a shovel at two o’clock. About ten men gathered, and the elder led us into the forest. On the way, we met two unfamiliar politsais [members of the Auxiliary Police]. One of them escorted us to the site of the execution. People were brought there in batches of four. They undressed, took off their shoes, and stood at the edge of the pit, their backs to the German soldiers. An order was given, and a volley was fired. Before our eyes, women, children, and elderly people were killed. The executioners were replaced after several salvos had been fired. The next four were brought to the pit – a mother and three children. They undressed in silence, but when the politsai had shown the mother her place near the pit, the children clutched at her from all sides, clung to her shirt, and pressed themselves against her. The policemen, cursing, tried to pry them apart. But the children seemed to be attached to the mother's body. Then, the politsais began to beat them with rifle butts. They dragged them toward the pit. The Germans killed them with shots to the head as they lay in the snow. I felt sick. Leaning on my shovel, all I could think of was how to prevent myself from falling over. When all the Jews had been shot, the German waved his hand at us and pointed at the pit. By that time, the Germans had brought half a hundred diggers with shovels to the area. I was one of them. We gathered around the pit and began to bury the dead.