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Special Incidents
appeared and new top-notch metal-working machine tools began to arrive at the
factory in Kleinbodungen and in the institute’s shops.
In early September 1945, Pilyugin and I went to Dresden for three days to place
orders for gyroscopic instruments. When we returned, we found Isayev in a
gloomy mood. He was chain-smoking his favorite Byelomor cigarettes, and finally
he told us about what had happened in our absence.
In the middle of the workday, Schmidt, who was usually very polite and respectful,
literally burst into Villa Franka where Isayev was resting after returning from
Lehesten. He yelled at Isayev, “Your soldiers are raping German women!” After
calming down a bit, Schmidt explained that the woman he was living with (his
wife had remained in another town) was strolling with a female acquaintance in
the forest.A Russian soldier had attacked them, raped his friend, and disappeared.
There was nothing for Isayev to do but to report Schmidt’s complaint to the military
commandant. Captain Solodyankin, remembering Marshal Zhukov’s threatening
orders, reported the incident to the commander of the division billeted in
the area of Bleicherode.There they quickly determined that they should look for
the perpetrator in the artillery brigade attached to the division, which was getting
ready to return to the Soviet Union.To wipe away the division’s shame, the brigade
commander ordered all of his men to stand in formation in the town square. He
led the victim past them to identify the perpetrator. She pointed at a Kazakh
soldier, who was arrested on the spot.The accused confessed during interrogation
that his goal was to get revenge against the Germans for his two brothers who died
at the front. He himself had never gotten the opportunity to kill a German in
combat. Having learned of their impending evacuation from Germany, he decided
to avenge the death of his brothers in that way.The next day a military prosecutor
was to arrive from Erfurt, and a military field trial would be held. Iron discipline
was now being restored in the army, and it was not out of the question that they
would sentence him to be shot.“And it’s all my fault,” Isayev said,“I don’t know
what possessed me to hurry over to the commandant with that report. I needed
to calm Schmidt down. Maybe we could have agreed not to take the matter to the
military tribunal.”
The next day there really was a trial and they sentenced the soldier to be shot.
I reported this to Schmidt over the telephone. He immediately rushed over to Villa
Franka along with his girlfriend, the victim. She was not young, and was tall and
well built. She seemed to be a woman who could stand up for herself.
Schmidt and his girlfriend shouted over each other that they were shocked by
such a harsh sentence.They were prepared to forgive the soldier and asked me to
intervene to save his life. I immediately called the division commander and asked
if something could be done to save the soldier since the victim was stunned by the
severity of the sentence, wanted to petition for a pardon, and had forgiven him.
The general was silent for a moment and then said that he would call me back in
a half hour.Thirty minutes later, he reported that he had talked with Berlin.They
had explained to him that Moscow had given instructions to establish rigid order
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