German prosecutors said Friday they plan to ask American officials for help in their war crimes investigation of an 88-year-old Philadelphia man who is accused of serving as an SS guard at the Auschwitz death camp, AP reported. Gerd Schaefer, the head prosecutor in the Bavarian town of Weiden whose office is leading the investigation, said he was working with the German Justice Ministry to prepare the request and it should be ready within about two weeks. The German investigation of Johann "Hans" Breyer, a retired toolmaker, comes after years of failed U.S. Justice Department efforts to have him stripped of his American citizenship and deported. Schaefer wouldn't specify exactly what help authorities were seeking, other than to say that "the accused needs to be contacted." -- SPA 18:40 LOCAL TIME 15:40 GMT تغريد
