Camp Papago Park

[1] In December 1944, twenty-five POWs escaped from Camp Papago Park into the surrounding desert, among them Kapitänleutnant Hans-Werner Kraus.

[1] Though the guards proved easy to get past, the vast distances and desert terrain were insurmountable, resulting in most returning to the camp within a few weeks.

[1] This did not mean all had abandoned any hope of making it home, and a few of the men brought along boards they intended to fashion into a raft.

[1] When two escapees were recaptured, subsequent events further illustrated differences between Axis and Allied POW operations: The two men dined with a local customs official at his home.

[1] Later nearby residents came to see the escapees first-hand after their story appeared in the news, as did a handicapped boy looking for a game of chess.

Eppinga said she used a Freedom of Information Act request to access court-martial papers, which she finally found in the National Archives.

During the course of her research, Eppinga said she was most surprised to see how Drechsler — who had provided German secrets to U.S. Navy authorities — was handled when he arrived to the camp.