Diamondback said:Never mind that the biggest thing to thwart it was that the team-leader turned and sought out the FBI almost as soon as he came ashore...
That man, in spite of his being a damn (believe me, I'm working very hard to keep my language polite here) black-bagger, was a hero in my book.
You are correct, however, few seem to know the rest of the story. The man who came forward had grown up in America, and at the start of the war, found himself as a young man in Germany unable to return. He had lived atypical american life, working in an auto plant and enjoying american teendom. he wanted nothing better than to return to his former life.
In Germany, he was recruited by the government, and went along with it, with the intention of returning to the US and turning himself in, expecting to be allowed to return to his former life. or so he claimed. And all indications point to this being true.
I believe he was not the only one in the same boat. One interesting give away is that upon arriving in the US, the first thing several of them did is go to macy's and spend a lot of the money they had. Which explains something I noticed upon seeing pics years ago. They are wearing rather flashy clothes including spectators.
Shortly after arriving, he went to the authorities and turned himself in. There may have been two or more. Not sure.
Contrary to his expectations, the FBI was so embarrassed at not having caught them themselves, they quickly silenced him, refusing to allow him to testify in court, which would have shown their failure to detect the sabatours. In stead, they took the credit.
This is why they were tried under a tribunal instead of in open court. it went all the way to the supreme court. he was never allowed to testify in his own defense. In later years, one of the judges of the supreme court said that had it not been in war time and everyone caught up in fear, he would not have decided to allow the closed tribunal and regretted it all his life.
This American Life did an episode on it. It was topical because it was a precedent used by the then administration to justify their own trials outside the normal judiciary system. A dubious precident, upon close examination.
So, now you know the rest of the story. Quite fascination. And I finally got an explantion as to why sabatours wear spectator shoes and flashy suits.