Warsaw, Poland – Poland’s interior minister has filed a complaint with prosecutors regarding an incident involving a grenade launcher gifted to the former head of police by a Ukrainian official, resulting in an explosion in the police chief’s office. The incident, which occurred in December 2022 and left the police chief hospitalized, stirred outrage at the time. Media reports later revealed that the repair costs for the damage caused by the explosion amounted to 17,000 zloty (€3,943).
Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński, who assumed office in December as part of a new government replacing the former ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, announced on Friday an audit into the incident. The audit uncovered 27 serious transgressions related to the grenade launcher and its explosion, highlighting issues with police management under the former chief, Jarosław Szymczyk, and PiS politicians.
Kierwiński revealed that reports would be submitted to the prosecutor’s office, with one focusing on possession of a weapon without a permit and the other on abuse of power. The minister criticized Szymczyk for failing to have the grenade launcher inspected after receiving it during a visit to Ukraine. Szymczyk, who was politically aligned with PiS, resigned just days before the new government took office.
During a working visit to Ukraine in December 2022, Szymczyk received two grenade launchers, one of which was converted into a loudspeaker by the head of Ukraine’s police force. The other, obtained from Ukraine’s state emergency service, was allegedly deemed safe. However, an explosion occurred in Szymczyk’s office in Warsaw as he rearranged the grenade launchers, causing significant damage and injuring the police chief.
Following the incident, Dmytro Bondar, the deputy head of Ukraine’s state emergency service responsible for the gift, was suspended and criminal proceedings were initiated in Ukraine. The situation raised concerns about the handling of weapons and gifts between officials in the two countries.
The incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of proper handling and inspection of weapons, especially those received as gifts between officials. The fallout from the explosion underscores the need for accountability and transparency in law enforcement agencies to prevent such incidents from occurring in the future.