Tragedy in Smilgiai

A Terrible Evening

On the evening of December 1936 in Smilgiai, the Wednesday market had long since ended. Feiga Fogel was closing the shutters and doors of her shop when, at the same time, carpenter Bronius Bogužinskas appeared, claiming he needed to buy some cigarettes.

What happened next is best left unsaid. All we need to know is that an axe was used, and five people were left dead on the floor—Feiga and her family, their adopted daughter, their maid, and even a relative who had arrived at the wrong place at the wrong time.

The killer stole the day’s earnings from the cash register, along with donations meant for Jewish charities, which were kept in boxes on the kitchen walls.

The next morning, Bronius went to Šeduva as if nothing had happened. He visited the market, where he bought a horse, a cart, new clothes, shoes, and other items in preparation for the upcoming holidays.

But his enjoyment of his new purchases was short-lived. On Christmas Eve, the criminal police in Panevėžys arrested him. Bronius Bogužinskas became the first person in Lithuania to be executed by gas chamber.