Following on from last night, to show that it wasn't just SS units involved in war crimes atrocities, he is some detail of an incident involving men of the British 6th Airborne Division and the 1 Coy, 716 Division Engineering Battalion at Herouvillette on the 6th June '44 
The following was witnessed by the local people of the village in those early hours, the Germans, clearly well known to them after years of occupation and them being at Herouvillette.
As you read through this, keep this in mind 'a German Catholic priest, who was serving as an NCO with this Engineering unit.' He was known to the local civilians as Karl.
In the early hours of the 6th June, a small group of men from mixed Parachute Battalions along with a RE entered the village on a jeep. A French civilian directed them straight into a planned ambush at this junction. They entered the village from the east and drove westwards.
Witness reports from locals tell of what happened next, Karl Finkenrath's batman, Willy Maustrum began to finish off the wounded British men after the jeep had been engaged. He was seen to use the butt of his rifle (*witness gave incorrect surname but identified the correct Karl)
As the day developed, British prisoners were taken. These men would be taken to Le Lieu Harras Farm where Karl and his men were positioned. The panorama shows the yard. The second two look towards the position of an execution and the witnesses view.
Karl was witnessed to interrogate two British Paratroopers on separate occasions. Twice he would be witnessed to shot them at point blank range as detailed by the farm hands who watched.
Once the village had been liberated, the British were able to bury the dead. H/Capt Nimmo a Padre buried them at the church in Herouvillette. The reports stated that the deaths were consistent with combat actions and at the time were not seen as war crimes.
Within the detailed files, the investigators took time to have maps drew to support the case from witnesses accounts, the farm is private property now and gated off.
Karl, known to have been a former Catholic Priest before being a NCO in the Engineering Battalion. It just shows how complex war is and what drives people to commit such things. He was never held accountable for this actions and it is believed he died in Normandy '44.
So next time you're in Normandy and if you have time, head to Herouvillette. At the rear of the church down the lane is the CWGC plot. As always, every man has his own story and a life that was fully never lived. Some here were murdered and not killed in action.
