Oswald John Job was convicted of spying. Oswald John Job Age:- 58 Date of Execution:- Thursday, 16th March, 1944 Location of Execution:- Pentonville Hangman:- Albert Pierrepoint Assistants:- Harry Kirk Tried At:- Old Bailey, London Trial Dates:- 24th - 26th January, 1944 Trial Judge:- Mister Justice Stable Crime:- Spying One of the most insurmountable problems encountered by an enemy agent is how to conceal the radio transmitter he needs to send information back to his masters. The German authorities felt sure that they had solved this problem in the case of Oswald Job, by finding an alternative form of communication. Job was the son of a German couple and had lived in Paris since 1911. Once France fell, Job was approached by the Germans and agreed to act as a spy on their behalf. He was given extensive training and then finally told that his task would be to get to England and report back on morale and the damage caused by German bombing. In 1943, Job was taken to the Spanish border by German agents and, having reached Lisbon, told a story of being a British subject who had escaped from German custody in France. He flew to England, landing here on November 1st, 1943. Job was supplied with secret writing equipment hidden in the hollows of keys and told to write letters addressed to certain British people held in the St. Denis internment camp. These letters would be sent in the names of genuine relatives and friends of the internees and would be intercepted by the Germans and the secret information decoded. Neither the internees or their relatives back in England, knew how their names were being used. The plan failed though because the British authorities were not satisfied with Job's story and in due course he admitted being an agent for the Germans. At his trial though, Job claimed that he had fooled the Germans and only volunteered to spy for them so he could escape to England. This final attempt to escape the gallows failed and Job was executed in March, 1944.
