United States Immigration Authorities ordered Friday, the deportation of Laszlo Imre Agh, former lieutenant in the pro-Axis Hungarian Army, on charges of atrocities against Jewish and other conscript labor under his command in 1942.
Agh, now a 52 year-old accountant for the National State Bank of Newark said he would appeal to the Board of Immigrations Appeals Office in Washington within the ten-day limit. He and his wife both came to this country in 1947, His wife’s citizenship is not affected. He was charged by the government with “participating and performing activities contrary to civilization” while serving at the Frigyes Barracks near Kamorom in Hungary.
The deportation order was based on hearings held last March and April. It was issued by William B. Taffet special inquiry officer for the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, after testimony from 33 witnesses in the U.S., Canada and Israel. Agh has denied all charges, however. Refugees from the Hungarian uprising of 1956 were among his accusers.
The Immigration Service said Agh had tried to conceal the war crimes and that the alleged atrocities were discovered by Federal agents during an investigation of his citizenship application of 1952.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
