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89-Year-Old Philadelphia Man Arrested for Alleged Role in Nazi Holocaust

By Vishakha Sonawane | Jun 19, 2014 09:13 AM EDT

Acting on a German arrest warrant, U.S. officials arreseted an 89-year-old Philadelphia man on Tuesay for his alleged role in the Nazi slayings of 216,000 Jews at Auschwitz, the infamous World War II death camp in Poland.

Johann 'Hans' Breyer, a retired toolmaker, is being held on 158 counts of abetting the murder of Jews during the Holocaust at Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp. In 2012, Breyer said he was an SS guard at Auschwitz in Poland during World War II. However he said he was in no way involved in the mass killings.

According to legal documents, a district court in Weiden, Germany, issued a warrant for Breyer's arrest the day before, charging him with complicity in the commission of murder. Each count represents a trainload of Nazi prisoners from Hungary, Germany and Czechoslovakia who were killed at Auschwitz-Birkenau between May 1944 and October 1944, the documents said.

Breyer's lawyer argued Wednesday that Breyer, who immigrated to the U.S. in 1952, was too weak to be detained but prosecutors said he will remain in a detention center at an undisclosed area.

Breyer, who is the oldest person to be accused of Nazi war crimes by the U.S., entered the court leaning on a cane accompanied by his wife Shirley and two of his grandsons.

The New York Times reports Breyer appeared to be confused during points inthe hearing, but law enforcement officers have testified he was fully mindful when arrested.

His lawyers told the court Breyer had mild dementia and heart issues and has previously suffered strokes. 'Mr Breyer is not a threat to anyone,' attorney Dennis Boyle told the court. 'He's not a flight risk.'

The German investigation comes after years of failed U.S. efforts to have Breyer's American citizenship revoked. According to German federal prosecutors, they found enough evidence to let Weiden continue its investigation of Breyer.

Efraim Zuroff, who investigates and pursues remaining Nazi war criminals for the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Jerusalem, said he hoped there would be no red tape in getting Breyer extradited to Germany.

'If a country asks for him and they have a basis for the request, the United States is anxious, of course, to be rid of all of the Nazi perpetrators who immigrated there, it's a case where hopefully there will be no obstacles,' Zuroff told the AP. 'Germany deserves credit for doing this - for extending and expanding their efforts and, in a sense, making a final attempt to maximize the prosecution of Holocaust perpetrators.'

Breyer is being held without bail until his extradition hearing, which is set for August 21.