Bruno Sutkus
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| Bruno Sutkus | |
|---|---|
| 14 May 1924 | |
| Place of birth | Tannewalde(East Prussia) |
| Allegiance | Germany |
| Unit | 68th Infantry Division |
| Awards | Iron Cross 2nd & 1st class Infantry Assault Badge Wound Badge (silver) Sniper's Badge (gold) |
Born on May 14, 1924, in Tannenwalde (suburb of Königsberg in East Prussia), Bruno Sutkus (lith. Bronius Sutkus) was a German sniper in the 68th Infantry Division on the Eastern Front of World War II, and was credited with 209 kills. [1] Every kill was recorded in an individual "sniper's book" and had to be confirmed by other soldiers and superior authority. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Sutkus held lectures for Lithuanian soldiers and presented his war time records to Lithuanian officers.
He joined the Hitler Youth in 1938, achieving the rank of a Scharführer. When he was 18 years old he became a member of the SA where his shooting skills were acknowledged, and he was given a rifle to take home and practise marksmanship.
Sutkus trained as a sniper from August 1 through the end of December 1943 in Vilnius, before being assigned to the 68th Infantry Division.
In his autobiography, Sutkus describes that after the war he came into contact with the Lithuanian resistance (cf. Forest Brothers), how he was captured and severely tortured by the KGB, which then deported him and many Lithuanians to Siberia for forced labor - where he was forced to stay for 22 years before being allowed to relocate to Vilnius.
Sutkus was married to a Lithuanian woman (meanwhile deceased). He has one son. Only in 1990 - after 45 years - Sutkus got the opportunity to visit Germany again, where he moved in 1997.
[edit] Awards
- Iron Cross 2nd Class - July 6th 1944
- Wound Badge (black) - September 7th 1944
- Iron Cross 1st Class - November 16th 1944
- Sniper's Badge (1st class - gold) - November 21st 1944
- Infantry Assault Badge (silver) - November 29th 1944
- Wound Badge (silver) - March 1st 1945
- Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht on 25 November 1944
[edit] References
- ^ "Respublika", Nr. 284(1694). Gražina Ašembergiene. "209 kartus gyvas". December 4, 1995 (Lithuanian newspaper)
- "Lietuvos aidas", Nr. 93(6814). Saulius Šaltenis. "Karo meistras". May 6, 1995 (Lithuanian newspaper)
- Murawski, Erich. Der deutsche Wehrmachtbericht 1939 - 1945, vom 1.7.1944 bis zum 9.5.1945. Schriften des Bundesarchivs 9, Boppoard am Rhein: Harald Boldt Verlag, 1962
- Sutkus, Bruno (2003), Im Fadenkreuz – Tagebuch eines Scharfschützen [i.e. Inside the crosshair - the diary of a sniper]. Munin.
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