General Jarosław Szymczyk, the former police commander, appeared today at the Warsaw Public Prosecutor’s Office to answer charges tied to the possession of portable weapons without a permit and to an alleged act that could have endangered the lives and safety of many people and caused extensive property damage. In an interview with Radio Eska, he emphasized that offering explanations in the case could expose him to criminal liability.
On Monday, procedural activities occurred at the prosecutor’s office with General Szymczyk present and willing to provide information.
The authorities announced two charges. The first concerns possessing an unlicensed RGW-90 grenade launcher, an anti-tank weapon obtained in Ukraine and brought across Poland’s border at Dorohusk without declaration to the relevant customs and tax authorities.
The spokesperson for the Warsaw Public Prosecutor’s Office, Prosecutor Skiba, conveyed the information to journalists.
Prosecutor Skiba: The general said he did not understand
The second charge concerns unintentionally creating danger to the life and health of numerous people and to large-scale property by unlocking the grenade launcher at the police headquarters.
The act carries a potential prison sentence of up to five years.
The general stated that he did not understand the allegations, refused to respond to them, and requested the consent of the competent minister of the interior and administration to hear the case.
Prosecutor Skiba added that two proceedings against the former police chief had been ongoing for some time.
The Warsaw Public Prosecutor’s Office has been handling a notification submitted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration in March regarding events preceding the explosion and subsequent developments.
He also explained that a second proceeding by the Regional Public Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw, connected with the explosion itself, was initiated immediately after that date. A few weeks earlier, the two procedures were merged into one to reduce the duplication of procedural actions and materials. The case is now being pursued by the Warsaw District Attorney’s Office.
“Other facts under investigation”
The spokesperson noted that many witnesses have been interviewed in Poland and Ukraine as part of these proceedings. He highlighted the contribution of a former prosecutor in this case, Przemysław Ścibisz, who asked pointed questions in bombed Kyiv and personally interrogated witnesses from the Ukrainian side.
The spokesperson said the process remains ongoing and that other facts are under consideration.
He stressed that he would not comment further on the evidence at this stage because it remains largely confidential.
In December 2022, an explosion occurred in the office of the then chief police officer. Investigations showed that the grenade launcher involved was a dummy, received as a gift from Ukrainian services.
Szymczyk: The prosecutor has not received such a resolution
On the way to the prosecutor’s office, General Szymczyk declined to speak with the media; a bystander captured footage of remarks directed at him. A bystander shouted that Szymczyk’s actions affected people across Poland and Europe and that he had disgraced his uniform.
Afterward, the former police chief issued a brief statement to Radio Eska. He said that offering explanations could expose him to criminal liability and noted that all evidence is state and official secret.
He asked whether there was a ministerial resolution exempting him from the obligation to keep those two secrets; no such resolution had been received, he explained.
He admitted that he did not know special documents were required to import these kinds of gifts, and he added that many others had received similar gifts without being told they needed permission to possess or transport them.