German spies shot in Belgium. A U.S. military policeman prepares Corporal Wilhelm Schmidt, 24, for the firing squad.

German spies shot in Belgium. A U.S. military policeman prepares Corporal Wilhelm Schmidt, 24, for the firing squad. With two other German soies, Officer-Cadet Guenther Billing, 21, and Sergeant Manfred Pernass, 23, Schmidt was shot after a court-martial by American authorities in Belgium during the Ardennes offensives.The three Germans were captured wearing American uniforms, armed with American weapons and driving an American jeep during the ill-fated enemy offensive in December, 1944. They failed to give the password of any proper identification when stopped and admitted that their mission was to locate and sabotage communications and reconnoitre bridges and roads over the Meuse. Especially trained for espionage, the men had familiarized themselves with the American accent by mingling with U.S. prisoners-of-war in Germany. Een bezoeker van de beeldbank schrijft: 'De afgebeelde Duitse soldaat is Wilhelm Schmidt ?maar Manfred Pernass?. Vanaf het executiepeloton gezien staat Schmidt helemaal links, Günther Billing in het midden en Pernass staat helemaal rechts (kijk tussen Pernass en de Amerikaan die de schietmarkering aanbrengt, Billing en Schmidt zijn nog te zien). Toch vreemd dat deze bekende leden van Greif nog steeds verkeerd op naam gezet worden.'