Artur Hawrylewicz, 42, was sentenced by a court in London to 10 years in prison for trying to push an unknown Maria Osifeso under an oncoming subway train in August last year. The verdict was delivered on Monday, April 24.
On August 29, 2022, Maria Osifeso and her friends were driving towards Notting Hill, where the annual Caribbean Culture Festival was taking place. As the court found, while she was waiting for the tube at King’s Cross St. Pancras, Hawrylewicz approached her, wanting to start a conversation. The course of events was related by Judge Benedict Kelleher during sentencing, addressing the defendant directly: – (Osifeso) was a complete stranger to you. You tried to talk to her for a while but she ignored you,” the judge told the BBC. According to the findings of the investigation, a moment later the Pole embraced the 22-year-old and then – still holding her – rushed towards the oncoming subway train. The woman was saved by one of her friends, who knocked the 42-year-old to the ground. – Based on the evidence gathered, it is clear that you tried to kill yourself that day. However, nothing explains why you also tried to kill an innocent, unknown person – said Judge Kelleher to Hawrylewicz.
Maria Osifeso about trying to push herself in front of an oncoming subway
During Monday’s hearing, the victim herself also spoke about the case. – What if my friends weren’t there? What if my friend didn’t catch (Hawrylewicz)? What if I was standing closer to the tracks? asked the assembled Osifeso. “The thought of how close I came to death is traumatic,” she added.
On the day of the attack, Hawrylewicz reportedly drank a few beers and about a liter of vodka. His attorney, Alexia Nicol, described him as a “hard-working, family man” who, due to “his emotional problems, intoxication and crowded subway stations”, left him feeling “confused and desperate”. As she added, he wants to apologize to the victim, and “the events that took place that day, I regret every day.” The 42-year-old has lived in the UK for 15 years. In August 2021, his family decided to return to Poland, which, according to his lawyers, was to translate into emotional problems he experienced.
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