Barbie, Klaus

(1905–1987)

   The infamous “butcher of Lyon” was a Gestapo official in Lyon, France, where he was responsible for the execution of at least 4,000 persons, including Jean Moulin, the head of the French resistance. In addition, he ordered the deportation of 7,000 Jews to concentration camps and in April 1944 gave the order for the arrest and deportation of 44 children at a Jewish orphanage in the French village of Izieu.

   Following the war, he was able to avoid arrest because American intelligence officials believed he would be a valuable asset in the cold war against the Soviet Union. When it became apparent in 1950 that the French were intent on putting him on trial for war crimes, American intelligence agents provided him with false documents and a Bolivian visa. For the next 32 years, Barbie and his family enjoyed a new life in Bolivia under the assumed name of Klaus Altmann. In 1972, Barbie was located by Nazi hunters Serge and Beate Klarsfeld, but it was not until 1987 that he was extradited to France, where he was tried and convicted of war crimes. Barbie died in prison in 1987.