Perth, Australia – An 88-year-old alleged Nazi war criminal accused of murdering a young Jewish man in World War II on Thursday failed in his latest bid to escape extradition from Australia to Hungary.
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Charles Zentai is accused of beating to death teenager Peter Balazs in 1944 in Budapest while serving as a soldier in the army of his native Hungary, then allied with Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany.
Zentai, who denies the charges, was last year found eligible for extradition, but has mounted a series of challenges to the decision.
In his latest challenge, he appealed to the full bench of the Federal Court, arguing the crime was not an offence when it was allegedly committed.
The court ruled against Zentai, but granted him a stay of 14 days on the execution of the extradition warrant.
Zentai’s son, Ernie Steiner declared his father’s innocence and said the family would consider its options in the next fortnight.
“We’re leaving all options open at the moment, because we haven’t read the full extent of the judgment. There may be things in there that are worth pursuing,” he told reporters outside court.
Zentai still has the option of applying to the Australian High Court for leave to appeal and Attorney-General Robert McClelland will have the final say on whether to extradite him.
Steiner said his father’s best hope of avoiding extradition may be McClelland as the cost of appealing to the high court was enormous.
He defended his father against the accusations, saying he believed him to be innocent but that Zentai had never had the chance to present arguments in his defence in court.
“So this is really a travesty, this whole thing,” he said.
The allegations against Zentai have been brought by the Simon Wiesenthal Centre, the Jewish human rights organisation known for tracking down alleged Nazi war criminals.
Zentai, who migrated to Australia after the war, was living quietly in the western Australian city of Perth before the Hungarian government began extradition proceedings in March 2005.
Zentai’s bail was renewed on Thursday and he was to attend a cardiologist’s appointment ordered by the attorney-general’s office.
Good send him back to hungry and let that Nazi burn..
Isn’t it amazing how well these old nazis live and how good they look? Shame on the Yidden for allowing this!
It may not have been a crime at the time, and it’s just too bad the nazi regime is still not in power for him to get away with murder. I hope that they don’t give up this battle, for the sake of the boy he killed, and to let the world know that justice will prevail!
May Hashem avenge the blood of this youth!
why send him back-take him out right there
He was a 23yr old soldier following orders, no different that any young soldier. While we may not like the politics of that era, we can not presume to call a young soldier a war criminal. Were the American and Australian soldiers in Vietnam war criminals? Are the American soldiers in Afganistan war criminals? Blame the war on greed and power hungry leaders, blame the generals and the officers who gave the orders. But do not try to place blame on the young men who are forced to fight their wars. We were not there, we do not know the truth.
Maximum penalty for murder in Hungary is 30 yrs. If the killer can get away for the time period of maximum penalty, the killer is not punishable.