High reward now being offered to find Auschwitz sign

The reward being offered by various Polish institutions for information leading to the recovery of the stolen “Arbeit macht frei” (“Work shall set you free”) sign from the gate of the former Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz has been increased to 115 000 zloty (about EUR 27 500). The sign, which symbolizes the suffering of millions of people during the Nazi dictatorship, was stolen in the early morning hours of Friday.

After reaching an agreement with the Polish Culture Ministry, the Auschwitz museum decided to offer 100 000 zloty to find the stolen sign. Police have added 5 000 zloty to the offer and the remaining 10 000 zloty was offered by the Art Security Group security agency, which guards the area of the former concentration camp.

Polish police are searching for the stolen sign. On Friday they blocked the highways in the area and searched cars but found nothing. Museum management and police believe the perpetrators had to have planned the theft very well. There are several hypotheses as to who could be behind the crime. The theft could have been ordered by collectors, the work of neo-Nazis, or the work of ordinary scrap metal thieves.

Poland has stepped up controls on its borders with Belarus and Ukraine and at all airports.