In conclusion, Veltjens alludes in his report to the Roges company, which was a special organization for the transport to Germany of the booty captured in the occupied countries, and more particularly, of products acquired by operations on the black market. One of the directors of this organization, called Ranis, was interrogated on 1 November 1945, and declared in substance that the Roges company had begun its activity in February 1941, succeeding another organization. On the whole he confirms the facts that are reported in Veltjens’ report. I shall therefore simply submit a copy of his interrogation to the Tribunal under Document Number RF-113.
The scope of the operations on the black market is thus established by German documents which cannot be contested by the opposite side. I beg to point out to you that these documents prove that within 5 months, in three countries, these operations amount to the sum of 1,107,792,818 Reichsmark. We shall come back to certain details when examining the special situation of certain countries. However, it is necessary for me to indicate the reasons why the Defendant Göring finally came to decide that the black market operations should be suspended.
Indeed, on 15 March 1943, under the pretext of avoiding the risk of inflation in the occupied countries, Göring decided that black market purchases be suspended. We have just seen that the Defendant Göring worried little about the fate of the population of the occupied countries, since he had decided that the black market purchases were to continue even at the risk of inflation.
The true reason is the following: While the official German organizations were buying at prices which were strictly fixed by them, the clandestine organizations were accepting much higher prices. The merchandise was therefore always gravitating to the black market, to the detriment of the official market; and clandestine production in the end absorbed the normal production.
Finally it must be added that the corruption resulting from such practices in certain circles of the German Armed Forces became disquieting to the German leaders. The black market was therefore suppressed officially on 15 March 1943, but some purchasing bureaus continued their clandestine activities until the time of liberation but on a much smaller scale than before 15 March 1943.
I cite a passage of the report of the French Economic Control which I have just put into evidence as Document Number RF-107 and which gives an idea of the disorder that was created by the German actions and which shows the reasons why the Reich authorities officially suspended the black market purchases—Page 21 of the French text:
“That was the time when champagne, cognac, and benedictine were handled by lots of 10,000 to 50,000 bottles and pâte de foie gras by the ton! From the very beginning the general corruption had affected a great number of the Wehrmacht officers, attracted by the sumptuous life which surrounded them. It penetrated so far into the German military circles that, from the lower mess sergeant up to the superior officer, each one was implicated with the worst traffickers, demanding commissions on all the deals. In a clandestine sale of wool thread the authorities found themselves face to face with a general of the Air Force.”
Around them soon flocked all the bad elements of France, swindlers and other habitual criminals. Then came a crowd of all the customary trade traffickers, brokers, and out-of-work agents, generally unimportant middlemen.
It is understood that in such a circle, composed of unknown and elusive people, the black market deals which were transacted without invoices and in cash, and without written receipts, except those of the German offices, cannot today be easily disclosed and evaluated.
I resume the quotation at Page 22: