Naftaly Frenkel - Later Career

Later Career

In his later career, Frenkel was protected from arrest and possible execution by intervention at the very highest level. Stalin had control over who was and who was not arrested during the Great Terror and its aftermath: it is noteworthy that despite the deaths of nearly all of his former colleagues, Frenkel managed to remain alive. By 1937 Frenkel was head of BAMlag, the Baikal Amur Mainline railway camp, one of the most chaotic and lethal camps in the Far East, yet when 48 Trotskyites were arrested in BAMlag in 1938 he was not among them, although the camp newspaper openly accused him of sabotage. Frenkel's case was mysteriously delayed in Moscow, seemingly by Stalin, leading the local BAMlag prosecutor to write to Soviet chief prosecutor Andrei Vyshinsky, I don't understand why this investigation was placed under 'special decree', or from whom this 'special decree' has come. If we don't arrest Trotskyite-diversionist-spies, then whom should we be arresting?

During 1937-1945 Frenkel was the head of Chief Directorate of Railroad Construction (ГУЖДС).

He was awarded the Order of Lenin three times (August 4, 1933, July 22, 1940, September 16, 1943) and the title Hero of Socialist Labor.

On April 28, 1947, Frenkel was discharged from his duties for reasons of health, and was awarded a service pension.