Four men have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms for the killing of a Polish father-of-two who was tortured and set on fire in an organised crime dispute over smuggled cigarettes worth £1 million, according to BBC News.
Tomasz Samel, 45, was abducted from his Birmingham home in March 2019 by three men falsely claiming to be Interpol officers. He was then driven to the Liverpool area where he was subjected to a brutal attack linked to the seizure of illicit cigarettes that had been smuggled into the UK from Poland.
Birmingham Crown Court heard that Samel was stripped naked, doused in petrol and set alight while seated and defenceless. After the attack, he was abandoned in a remote area of Lancashire, where he managed to walk to a house in the village of Bickerstaffe to seek help. He was taken to Whiston Hospital in Prescot but died on 21 June 2019, nearly three months after the assault.
Life sentences handed down
Neil Jones, 49, of no fixed address, and Tobiasz Kozlowski, 38, from Kirkby, Merseyside, were jailed for life after being convicted of murder and conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm in August. Both had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to kidnap and conspiracy to falsely imprison before the trial began, while Jones had also admitted manslaughter.
Judge Mr Justice Wall described the pair as the “organisers” who had a “motive to punish” Samel due to the financial stake they held in the missing cigarettes. “I am sure that the two of you intended that Mr Samel would die,” the judge told them during sentencing.
Kevin Wooden, 46, of Banbury, Oxfordshire, and Kye Arthur, 35, from Lockleaze, Bristol, were found guilty of manslaughter after being cleared of murder. They received sentences of 23 years and 22 years respectively. The court heard they had been paid to kidnap Samel, along with a third person who has not yet been identified.
International investigation
The killing was linked to a raid by HM Revenue and Customs in February 2019, when officers seized illicit and counterfeit cigarettes from a unit Samel kept in Elkington Street, Aston, Birmingham. Samel, who was the subject of an international arrest warrant, was kidnapped from his home in Raleigh Road, Handsworth, the following month.
The police investigation spanned multiple countries including Poland, Greece, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Colombia, France, Scotland and Wales, where the gang had operations or had fled after the kidnapping. The Crown Prosecution Service said Wooden was arrested in the Dominican Republic using a false name and had to be extradited before the trial.
Kozlowski’s wife, Sandra Kozlowska, 38, also from Kirkby, was convicted of assisting an offender by helping him avoid detection, hiding evidence and moving money. She received a three-year prison sentence, suspended for three years.
Judge Wall described the case as a “truly horrific series of events” and noted that Samel “was vulnerable at the time he was set alight – he was naked and outnumbered”. He added: “The level of his suffering between the time at which the injuries were inflicted and his death is difficult to imagine.”
What this means for Poles in the UK
This case highlights the serious risks associated with organised crime networks that target members of the Polish community in the UK. While tobacco smuggling may appear less serious than drug trafficking, this conviction demonstrates that those involved in such criminal enterprises face the same violent consequences as any organised crime operation.
Polish residents in the UK should be aware that criminals may pose as law enforcement officers to gain access to homes or persons. Genuine Interpol or police officers will always provide proper identification and will not conduct arrests or searches without following proper legal procedures. Anyone approached by individuals claiming to be from Interpol or other law enforcement should ask to see official identification and verify their credentials before complying with any requests.
If you have information about organised crime or tobacco smuggling, you can report it anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or through the HMRC fraud hotline. Anyone who feels threatened or in immediate danger should contact the police on 999.
