Extremism

Mystery as unmarked grave of infamous Nazi Reinhard Heydrich - Hitler's feared 'Butcher of Prague' third in command - is dug up in Berlin

The grave of notorious Nazi leader Reinhard Heydrich has been mysteriously forced open in Berlin.

Heydrich, who helped to plan the Holocaust and was dubbed the 'Butcher of Prague' for his brutality in occupied Czechoslovakia, was buried in the German capital after his assassination in 1942.  

The tomb has been unmarked since the end of the war, but last week it was found prised open by an employee at the Invalids' Cemetery. 

Berlin police say the motive is unclear, because no bones were removed.   

The culprits are thought to have had inside knowledge of the grave's location, because the markings on graves of prominent Nazis were removed after World War II to prevent Nazi sympathisers turning them into shrines.

The grave was 'dug up in the night between Wednesday and Thursday' and an investigation has been opened on charges of disturbing a burial site, police said. 

Berlin police told local media that there were no immediate suspects and it appeared that nothing was removed.    

Heydrich was Nazi Germany's third in command after Hitler and Heinrich Himmler, and was marked out for his cruelty even within the Nazi elite.