David Frankfurter

FRANKFURTER, DAVID (1909–1982), student of medicine who shot a Nazi official in protest against the persecution of Jews under the Nazi regime. The son of a rabbi, Frankfurter was born in Daruvar, Croatia (Yugoslavia). While studying in Germany, he witnessed the Nazi advent to power and the initiation of anti-Jewish measures. He left Germany and continued his studies in Switzerland. On Feb. 4, 1936, he shot and killed Wilhelm Gustloff, the leader of the Swiss branch of the Nazi party. A local court sentenced him to 18 years imprisonment, of which he served nearly nine. He was pardoned after the Nazi defeat but was banished forever from Switzerland. He settled in Israel and published a book about his experience, Nakam ("Vengeance," 1948). In 1969 the banishment order was rescinded and Frankfurter visited Switzerland. In Israel he worked for the Ministry of Defense.

Sources:E. Ludwig, Davos Murder (1937).

[Yehuda Reshef]