Chugalug (#8833),
It does sound fishy, doesn't it. And strange, too. As a general rule, I believe they wanted to keep their aircrew prisoners alive for their potential value as Intelligence sources.
Perhaps they had a sadistic Commandant, Walter, who wanted to amuse himself by setting up a "shot while trying to escape" scenario (which would give a veneer of legality over the murder), Or it was a set-up "pour encourager les autres" !
Danny.