JULIAN PISKULAK

Kielce, [...] 1948. [...] from the Criminal Investigation Section of the Citizens’ Militia Station in Kielce, on the instruction of the Prosecutor from the District Court in Kielce, with the participation of court reporter [...], heard the person named below as a witness. Having been advised of the criminal liability for making false declarations and of the wording of Article 140 of the Penal Code, the witness testified as follows:


Name and surname Julian Piskulak
Parents’ names Jan and Katarzyna, née Skrzemowska
Date of birth 26 June 1884
Place of birth Kielce
Religious affiliation Roman Catholic
Occupation caretaker
Place of residence Kielce, Dymińska Street 77

In the winter of 1943, in the municipal jail at Zamkowa Street 2, the Germans established a camp for Poles who had been caught in the streets and who were to be subsequently deported to Germany and other places unknown to me. The camp wasn’t manned by the Germans, but by the Polish "Blue" police. There were no foreigners in the camp.

On average, there were 40–70 people in the camp, and over a thousand people might have passed through the camp during its period of operation.

In the autumn of 1944, some resistance fighters arrived at the camp, clad in German clothes. Watchman Ostrowski, who was later killed, let them in. They released 17 people, and 6 people who didn’t want to leave stayed in jail, but the camp was wound up immediately after.

The prisoners didn’t work in the camp. At first, the food was not enough as one would get a piece of bread and half a liter of coffee per day, but later the prisoners received dinners from Caritas [charitable Church organization].

If someone fell sick, the doctor would come to see them. Nobody died.

I know that there was one pregnant Jewish woman in the camp, and that gendarme Strzelanowski (I know neither his name nor rank) came and shot her by the toilets. Another time, two Germans arrived, and they took a Pole beyond the wall and fired one shot. I don’t know whether they killed him or not. Then they took another Pole and fired two shots at him; one of them probably fled. I don’t know their surnames. I don’t know where these dead people were buried.

No material evidence survived as everything was taken by the police.

There was no crematorium in the prison (the camp).

I don’t know the surnames of the arrested people.

There weren’t any Germans. The camp was headed by Sikora (I don’t know his name) who wore chevrons on his sleeves. I had known another policeman, Nowak, but he was killed as the Soviet Army was in the process of capturing Kielce.

At this point, I conclude my testimony and, having read it, I sign it.

I don’t know who else could testify in this case.