THE HUNTEMANN FILE, ANNEXURE VII.
Recapture of the Escaped 'Nordpol' Agents CABBAGE and PARSNIP.
About March/April 1944, V-Mann LINDEMANS reported to Uffz. KUP that he was in contact with an espionage group in Rotterdam. This group intended to send two agents to the UK with extensive quantities of espionage material. It was reported that matters had been arranged with London through a W/T operator who was working for the espionage group, and that the two couriers were to be fetched at an agreed point on the coast of one of the Zeeland islands by a British M.L.
Uffz. KUP od FAK-307 received the order to make preparations for the arrest of the two couriers in such a way that the espionage material would be captured at the same time. Meantime it had become known from further reports by LINDEMANS, that the agents in question were from the UK, who had been arrested but had escaped. This led to the assumption that the two agents in this case were probably connected with the five 'Nordpol' prisoners who had escaped.
Special papers were necessary to make the journey to the Zeeland islands, which were a protected area. LINDEMANS procured the necessary papers for the two couriers on the ground of his supposedly good connections with a German Dienststelle. Thus, in this manner, Abwehr III-F through the SIPO received particulars of the names and/or cover names, under which the two couriers were travelling.
A controle or check on the train by officials of the SD or SIPO was carried out between Roosendaal and Bergen-op-Zoom on the day of the intended journey, and the couriers in question were arrested. It transpired that these two men were, in fact, none other than PARSNIP (Jan van Rietschoten) and CABBAGE (Aart van der Giessen). Extensive esionage material, about 500 small film negatives, were secured, and both agents were conducted to the prison at Haaren by the SIPO and later transferred to the prison at Assen.
A report was made by the SIPO to FAT-365 - the FAT concerned in the affair - regarding further arrests of the Dutch espionage group concerned in the affair, but GISKES and HUNTEMANN cannot now remember the details. Moreover, it is not known to HUNTEMANN and GISKES whether action was taken against CABBAGE and PARSNIP on account of their attempt to reach England. (Beiden werden echter in de buurt van Haaren in opdracht van Deppner vermoord)
In January/February 1944, the SIPO reported that the agent LACROSS (Klaas Wegner) who had escaped with PARSNIP and CABBAGE from Haaren in 1943, had been arrested in Belgium. He was taken to Haaren and probably later transferred to Assen. Details of his arrest are not known to GISKES or HUNTEMANN.
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