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Anti-jewish Laws in France Exploited by Swindlers to Extort Money from Jews

August 17, 1941
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The anti-Jewish laws in Franca are being exploited by swindlers and blackmailers to extort money from Jews under different threats and pretexts, the police authorities in Paris and in other French cities have discovered.

Typical is the case reported today from Paris where Pierre Delamare, an “aryan” appointed to administrate Jewish enterprises, was arrested in a cafe while extorting 10,000 france from a Jew. The victim, a former trader, was threatened by the French “aryan” with blackmail and being sent to a concentration camp unless the Jew paid him a bribe of 30,000 francs. The same French administrator, it was established, was extorting money also from other Jewish traders for prolonging the liquidation of their enterprises, as well as from “Aryans” for facilitating their buying Jewish businesses. Additional complaints about other “aryan” administrators who are utilizing the anti-Jewish laws for blackmailing Jewish businessmen have also reached the Paris police.

A report from Nice reveals that a Jewish banker, whose name is not disclosed, has been swindled out of a million francs by two Frenchmen who assured him that they could arrange to restore him to his former position. One of the swindlers died of a heart attack in a Nice hotel when he read in a newspaper that his partner has been arrested. The police found on his person 500,000 france in cash of the money extorted from the Jewish banker.

In Paris, two bandits posing as police detectives authorized to check Jewish enterprises, appeared in the famous Flambaum Kosher restaurant and ordered the owner, Mrs. Flambaum, into her office. There they locked her up, cut the telephone line, and robbed her of 160,000 francs in cash and jewelry.

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