Germany expects Demjanjuk to arrive on Tuesday

[David]

AP


SEVEN HILLS, Ohio – Suspected Nazi guard John Demjanjuk is expected to be deported to Germany by Tuesday, a German Justice Ministry spokesman said as the retired autoworker remained inside his suburban Cleveland home.

Demjanjuk (pronounced dem-YAHN'-yuk) is wanted on a Munich arrest warrant that accuses him of 29,000 counts of accessory to murder as a guard at the Sobibor death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland.

"According to our current information, we anticipate that he will arrive in Germany tomorrow during the course of the day," Justice Ministry spokesman Ulrich Staudigl told The Associated Press on Monday.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials went to Demjanjuk's home Friday to serve a government notice asking that he surrender. The move came one day after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Demjanjuk's appeal to stop his deportation.

The 89-year-old and his family have yet to offer clues about when and how he will respond. Demjanjuk remained in his home Monday morning.

Demjanjuk rejects the German allegations. He maintains he was held by the Germans as a Soviet prisoner of war and was never a camp guard.

Once in Germany, Demjanjuk will be brought before a judge and formally charged. He will also be given the opportunity to make a statement to the court, in keeping with normal justice procedure, Staudigl said.

Demjanjuk's family has been battling the deportation, saying he is in poor health and might not survive the trans-Atlantic journey.

Once in Germany, Demjanjuk is expected to be held in the medical unit of a Munich prison. The government has said preparations have been made at the facility to ensure he will receive appropriate care.