Former 'Accountant of Auschwitz' asks God for forgiveness during trial facing 300,000 counts of accessory to murder

Former Auschwitz guard, Oscar Groening has asked for God's forgiveness after serving Austchwitz during his testimony in court, last Wednesday. The 94-year-old worked for Austchwitz when he was just 13 and later became the "Accountant of Auschwitz."

MUNTINLUPA, PHILIPPINES (Catholic Online) - Oskar Groening faces a possible three to 15 years in prison, if convicted as an accessory to murder back at the death camp in German-occupied Poland.

Oskar Groening asked for God's forgiveness during the trial against the Holocaust survivors. The 94-year-old claims if he only knew about the things that were happening and would be happening in Auschwitz, he would never have went there. Several stories from the co-plaintiffs, present in the trial, also described details that added up to the pile of the atrocities of the NAZI regime.

Irene Weiss, 84, present during the trial, shared details on how frightened she was during the very critical time.

"If he were sitting here today wearing his SS uniform, I would tremble, and all the horror that I experienced as a 13-year old would return to me," said Weiss, who lost her parents, younger sister and three brothers in Auschwitz. "To that 13-year-old, any person who wore that uniform in that place, represented terror and the depths to which humanity can sink, regardless of what function they performed."

She was speaking about Oskar Groening, now accused of helping Auschwitz.

Although Groening was considered by many as a "small cog in the machine," his function during that timr still brings chilling memories to the survivors of the Holocaust.

Groening worked at the camp of the Germans and guarded the prisoners' baggage on the ramps. His main functions included collecting money and tallying stolen money from the new arrivals at camp. He would later send the amount to their office in Berlin.

The "Accountant of Auschwitz" faces a possible 15 years imprisonment if found guilty as an accessory to 300,000 counts of murder. He claims that he feels a great moral guilt for all the things he did back then.

"I can only ask my God for forgiveness," Groening said in court.

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