Richard Böch

was an SS-Rottenführer of the Waffen-SS during World War II. In 1944, Böch was stationed at the Auschwitz Concentration Camp, specifically to the guard battalion. His duties performed were mostly perimeter defense and manning watchtowers, thus his direct contact with prisoners was limited.

Witness to Gassing
Böch became internationally known when he provided testimony of an actual gassing using Zyklon-B, which was then recorded and published on The World at War documentary series. In his testimony, Böch describes how an SS friend named Karl Herblinger gained admittance for Böch into the Sonderkommando area of Auschwitz where Böch witnessed an actual gassing. Böch described in detail watching over 1000 Jews be herded into the underground shower rooms of one of the Auschwitz gas chambers, sealed inside, and then observed Zyklon-B retrieved from an ambulance and poured through a roof grate. Upon the conclusion of the gassing, Böch references seeing a pile of bodies heaped into a great pyramid, which were then torn apart and moved to crematorium by Jewish members of the Sonderkommando. Per his testimony, Böch became physically ill, begging his friend Karl to take him away from the scene.

Validity of Claims
Böch's testimony, while graphic and detailed, has raised some speculation as to whether or not Böch actually witnessed the gassing himself or related a story told by someone else. The main argument against Böch's claim is that SS security in the gassing compound was extremely tight, and not even SS members were allowed inside the special action perimeter unless they were involved in the killings. Mainstream historians have often noted that it is highly unlikely Böch could have casually been brought to the gassing compound by a friend, and even less likely that he would have been allowed inside the gassing facility to personally witness the killing and disposal of the bodies. In addition, the name "Karl Herblinger" does not appear on either the SS rolls of Auschwitz personnel or in the National Archives microfilm index of captured SS records. This lends credence to either the person mentioned being on temporary assignment to Auschwitz, an alias for someone else Böch knew, or a fabricated persona as part of a related story from another source.

On the counter, the testimony of other SS witnesses to gassing (such as Hans Münch) has argued that on occasion the SS did not check the credentials of those moving in and out of the compound, especially during the peak year of 1944 when the SS had rapidly accelerated its killing program and was murdering thousands per day.

Post War
After World War II, Richard Böch was cleared of crimes against humanity and in fact commended for helping Jewish prisoners survive Auschwitz. In the 1970s, he was made an honorary Auschwitz survivor as recognized by Jews and other survivors of the camp.