Rudolf Batz

Rudolf Batz (10 November 1903 – 8 February 1961) was an SS Sturmbannführer. From 1 July to 4 November 1941 he was the leader of Einsatzkommando 2 and as such was responsible, along with others, for the mass murder of Jews in the Baltic states.

Life
Batz was born in Bad Langensalza in Thuringia. After a course of studies in jurisprudence at the University of Göttingen, he joined the Nazi party on 1 May 1933. On 10 December 1935 he joined the Nazi SS. By 1938, he was a high ranking government official, and was promoted in 1940 to the rank of Sturmbannführer, roughly equivalent to major. In 1942 he was promoted to the rank of Obersturmbannführer, roughley equivalant to lieutenant colonel.

At the beginning of the German invasion of the Soviet Union he was the leader of a unit of about 40 men known as Einsatzkommando 2 and thus became responsible for overseeing the mass murder of the Jews of the Baltic states.

In 1943, Batz became KdS (Kommandeur der Sicherheitspolizei) in Cracow and shortly after that became the head of the Gestapo in Hannover.

After the war, Batz lived unrecognized for a long time in West Germany. In 1961 he was arrested and committed suicide while in custody awaiting trial.