The Soviets annexed Lithuania in 1940 and all Jewish businesses were confiscated. When Nazi Germany attacked the Soviet Union on June 21–22, 1941, Lithuania was quickly overrun. The Germans soon brought in special assignment squads to arrest and murder Jews. The Jews of Rokiškis and its environs were murdered in nearby woods just north of Bajorai, 400 meters east of the intersection of the northeasterly road to Juodupė and the northerly road to Lukštai. The official German army report (“the Jager Report”) states that on August 15–16, 1941, a total of 3,207 Jews were killed. Other Jews were deported to the ghetto of Joniškis and killed there.