Another seven charges against Marcin Romanowski

On Thursday evening, the head of Prime Minister Viktor Orban's office, Gergely Gulyas, confirmed that PiS MP Marcin Romanowski, former Polish Deputy Minister of Justice, received Hungary political asylum.

The National Prosecutor's Office accuses Romanowski, who as a politician of Solidarity Poland (and then Sovereign Poland) was the deputy head of the Ministry of Justice supervising the Justice Fund in the years 2019-2023, of committing 11 crimes, including participation in an organized criminal group and fixing competitions for money from this fund.

See also: Romanowski in Hungary. Live coverage

On Friday, the Minister of Justice and the Attorney General Adam Bodnar and national prosecutor Dariusz Korneluk organized a press conference about Marcin Romanowski, who fled to Hungary, and the Justice Fund.

– I treat the Justice Fund case as an absolute priority, which is why one of my first decisions in the prosecutor's office was to appoint investigative team number 2, which operates at the level of the National Prosecutor's Office. (…) We are dealing with this not because we want this or that politician to be brought to court in this case, but we believe that this is a fundamental issue from the point of view of the integrity of public life, the use of public funds or the use of public funds. for unauthorized purposes – said Bodnar.

– As the prosecutor general, I want to emphasize that I will not stop and will continue all efforts to settle all violations of the law and use of public funds that have occurred in recent years – assured the head of the Ministry of Justice.

Bodnar admitted that when the investigation into the Justice Fund began, “no one would have said that at the end of the year all the previously used obstructions would prove to be ineffective” and that the person suspected in the case “would have to take refuge with Viktor Orban and seek political asylum in Hungary.” “. According to Bodnar, no one expected that the Justice Fund issue “would be used to build or deepen these tensions when it comes to relations with Hungary or within the European Union.”

The minister announced that the involvement of the European Union and the Council of Europe would be necessary in the Romanowski case. – We cannot allow people who are suspected of committing such serious crimes to simply escape from the Polish justice system – said Bodnar, then declared that Poland will “always take all possible actions” to bring back suspected people. to the country in order to answer them before the Polish justice system.

In Bodnar's opinion, the Justice Fund issue is still developing. – We will by no means deviate from further explanation of this matter – emphasized Bodnar.

National prosecutor Dariusz Korneluk said that “the fact that Mr. Romanowski fled to the territory of Hungary does not mean that the threads involving him have been suppressed in any way.”

– Already today, the prosecutor sees the need to supplement the charges against Mr. Romanowski with another seven very serious criminal offenses related to his criminal spending of funds from the Justice Fund – said Korneluk.

As he announced, the prosecutor's office will first submit a request to the Sejm to waive Romanowski's immunity in relation to these charges.

Korneluk also said that the prosecutor's office had not received any documents regarding asylum for Romanowski. – From the formal and legal side, we do not know whether Mr. Romanowski actually received asylum. The Polish prosecutor's office has not received any documents in this regard. We are waiting for them, said the national prosecutor.

He also explained what might happen when Romanowski leaves Hungary. – If Mr. Romanowski leaves the territory of Hungary, he can and will be detained on the basis of an entry in the Schengen IT system, because it is still in force. However, if he is detained, he will of course be able to claim asylum, provided that asylum has actually been formally granted to him, he added.

In turn, in the event of a trip outside Europe, the prosecutor's office submitted an application for an Interpol red notice. – Our application is currently being processed at the Interpol headquarters – said Korneluk.

Marcin Romanowski's defense attorney, Bartosz Lewandowski, said on Thursday evening that the Hungarian government had taken into account the request of the PiS MP, former deputy minister of justice and “granted him international protection“The information was confirmed by the head of the office of the Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban.

The court agreed on Thursday issuing a European Arrest Warrant for Marcin Romanowski. An arrest warrant had already been issued for the PiS MP and former deputy minister of justice in connection with the court's decision to impose a three-month arrest on him.

Despite the search, the services failed to determine Romanowski's whereabouts for many days. The prosecutor's office stated that, according to its information, on December 6, Romanowski checked out of the medical facility where he underwent a planned medical procedure. Additionally, from that day on, the MP's phones registered with his personal data have been switched off.

Read also: He oversaw the Justice Fund. What do we know about Marcin Romanowski

The National Prosecutor's Office accuses Romanowski, who as a politician of Solidarity Poland (and then Sovereign Poland) was the deputy head of the Ministry of Justice supervising the Justice Fund in the years 2019-2023, of committing 11 crimes, including participation in an organized criminal group and fixing competitions for money from this fund.