March 28, 2006
A Lithuanian man found guilty of Nazi-era war crimes has been spared from serving his prison term. A court in Vilnius on Monday convicted Algimantas Dailide, 85, who worked for the Nazi-backed Lithuanian secret police during World War II, of seizing Jewish property and arresting 12 Jews who tried to flee the German-led genocide. But the court turned down requests by the prosecution for Dailide to serve five years in jail and set him free with the argument that he was too old and no longer posed a threat to society. Dailide has denied any wrongdoing, saying he was only a clerk for the Lithuanian secret police.
