San Francisco/Seattle  - An immigrant to the US from Romania had pled guilty to charges that he stole a bookmark that apparently belonged to Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler from an auction house in Madrid, Spain in 2002, the Seattle Times reported Thursday.

The gold bookmark was allegedly first given to Adolf Hitler by his mistress Eva Braun to console him after German forces surrendered at Stalingrad in 1943.

The bookmark is engraved with a portrait of Hitler as well as an imperial eagle and swastika. "My Adolf, don't worry," it reads in German, adding that the loss was "only an inconvenience that will not break your certainty of victory. My love for you will be eternal, as our Reich will be eternal. Always yours, Eva. 3-2-43."

Christain Popescu, 37, pleaded guilty to a single count of sale or receipt of stolen goods. He faces up to 10 years in prison when he is sentenced on June 12, but will likely face six months in prison under a plea agreement.

He was arrested in November outside a Seattle-area Starbucks after trying to sell the bookmark to an undercover agent for 100,000 dollars. (dpa)