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The day before there'd also been a raid, but that time we'd spotted them. It had been too late to escape. My brother and I hid underneath some duvets. Alis hid in the pigsty, and my father hid behind the door. Already at that time we had incredible luck. The first one to enter was a Guardist [11], and two steps behind him a German with a submachine gun. The Guardist entered, and saw my father behind the door, recognized him, and started. He yelled: "There's nothing here!" and they left. From what people told us we learned that the Germans were suspicious as to why the Guardist had run out of the room so quickly without searching it at all. That's why they returned the next day. They weren't rude to us. They told us to come with them. When we'd packed out things, they sent us down to wait for them by a truck. There wasn't anyone by the truck, and the keys were even there. In a while the Guardist that had been there the day before appeared. My father asked him: "What would happen if I started it?" He says to him: "Where do you want to go? You can't go to the bridge, because I have to fire off a shot, and if I suddenly fire one off, they'll make mincemeat of you down there. There's no use going in the other direction, because it doesn't lead anywhere." Because in that direction we would've left the forest, and they would've easily caught us. They drove us off to the jail of the district court in Piestany.
They kept us in the jail for about 10 to 14 days. My brother, Alis and I were in one cell. In another were Mrs. Terezie Kollmannova and her son Juraj, and my father was in a third. There were also 3 or 4 captured partisans there. Today the building houses the Electrical Technology High School, where a friend of mine teaches. Once I met him on the street and asked him for a favor. I explained to him that I'd like to recall what it looked like, and whether he wouldn't show it to me. Now there are labs there. From there, they took us all to the camp in Sered [12].
They kept us in the jail for about 10 to 14 days. My brother, Alis and I were in one cell. In another were Mrs. Terezie Kollmannova and her son Juraj, and my father was in a third. There were also 3 or 4 captured partisans there. Today the building houses the Electrical Technology High School, where a friend of mine teaches. Once I met him on the street and asked him for a favor. I explained to him that I'd like to recall what it looked like, and whether he wouldn't show it to me. Now there are labs there. From there, they took us all to the camp in Sered [12].
Location
Slovakia
Interview
Ladislav Urban