Vancouver man at centre of international outcry over Holocaust memorabilia

VANCOUVER – Canadian Jewish leaders are asking online retailers to be more vigilant, after an investigation by the Mail on Sunday newspaper in Britain found a Vancouver man and several other eBay retailers auctioning clothing and items that belonged to victims of Nazi concentration camps.

The newspaper identified Viktor Kempf, of Vancouver, as the seller of a pair of trousers purportedly worn by a prisoner who died in Auschwitz.

Kempf did not respond to several emails and telephone calls from The Canadian Press, but B’nai Brith vice-president Frank Dimant says items that belonged to the victims of Nazi concentration camps belong in museums, not online being sold to neo-Nazis.

The Mail on Sunday quoted Kempf as saying he understands why people may think it’s wrong to sell the items, but he does so to document a horrific period in history and to earn the money to write books.

Dimant commends eBay for taking quick action, but he says there is a proliferation of Holocaust and Nazi material sold on other, less-stringent sites, including replica Hitler Youth knives and SS weapons for sale on Amazon.com.

EBay has removed 30 items allegedly from Holocaust victims, apologized for the items making it to auction online and donated $40,000 to a suitable charity.