Judge Mandred Goetzl said that Scheungraber, the commandant of the unit, had 'avenged the death of his soldiers' on the civilians.

Scheungraber himself said nothing following the reading of the sentence, and has repeatedly denied any participation in the killings.

In 2006 Scheungraber was sentenced in absentia by an Italian court to life imprisonment.

Munich prosecutors are also preparing the case against John Demjanjuk, an alleged former concentration camp guard who was extradited from the US in May.