CIA to release classified Nazi documents

Mueller was head of Hitler's Gestapo

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Previously classified CIA files on top Nazi officials -- including Adolf Hitler, Josef Mengele, Adolf Eichmann, Heinrich Mueller and Klaus Barbie -- are to be released Friday.

The documents are the first of several hundred so-called "name files" to be made public on Nazis who played a role in the extermination of Jews during World War II.

The documents could shed light on what happened to Gestapo Chief Heinrich Mueller, who disappeared after the war. Mueller, who was the head of Hitler's Gestapo, was responsible for helping plan and carry out the murder of 6 million Jews.

The files are to be released by the Nazi War Crimes and Japanese Imperial Government Records Interagency Working Group, an organization committed to exploring the truth of what happened during World War II.

Some documents already released suggest that Mueller may have been in U.S. custody at one point. Other reports say he committed suicide, and others say he was seen in New Hampshire.

CNN Correspondent Anne McDermott contributed to this report

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