Investigators discontinued the investigation into the accident and shooting of two soldiers near the border with Belarus. Uncontrolled shots were fired as the men passed the gun to each other. As one of the soldiers assured, none of them pulled the trigger. Experts found that the weapon from which the shots were fired was technically faulty.
The investigation was discontinued by the military affairs department of the Białystok-Północ District Prosecutor's Office. Down accident occurred at the end of August 2024 during a change of duty station near Nowa Łuka (Podlaskie Voivodeship). The soldiers are there as part of Operation Safe Podlasie, conducted in connection with migration pressure and hybrid activities on the border with Belarus.
While unloading the weapons, uncontrolled shots were fired. One soldier had injuries to his thigh, another to his fingers. Both were taken to hospital, their lives were not in danger.
The circumstances of the accident were investigated by the Military Police under the supervision of the military affairs department of the Białystok-Północ District Prosecutor's Office, which is formally subordinated to the District Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw.
From the beginning, the proceedings focused on careless handling of weapons (Article 354, paragraph 1 of the Penal Code). A soldier who carelessly handles or uses military weapons and thereby unintentionally causes damage to the functions of a body organ or health disorder to another person, shall be subject to the penalty of military arrest or up to three years in prison.
No one pulled the trigger and the gun fired
During the investigation, it was determined that the accident occurred in a welfare container at the border post. Two soldiers were preparing to leave their duty and leave their post. One of them intended to unload his service weapon – a Glauberyt submachine gun. However, the mechanism jammed. The second soldier, more experienced, approached his colleague to help solve the problem. While weapons were being taken over, uncontrolled shots were fired. The soldier who wanted to help had two fingers injured and the other suffered a gunshot wound to the thigh.
The testimony of the first of them shows that neither of them pulled the trigger. The second one said he didn't remember anything.
An expert was appointed in the case to prepare an expert opinion on this weapon. According to information obtained by PAP from the prosecutor's office on Tuesday, the expert assessed that the weapon was technically defective. The failure resulted not from the soldier's fault, but from normal use.
In this situation, the proceedings were discontinued due to the lack of elements of a prohibited act. The investigators concluded that in this case the soldier could not be blamed for even an unintentional act that resulted in the accident.
The decision to discontinue this investigation is not final. Its justification shows that the weapons were unloaded in a container and not in a place specially designated for this purpose. This may possibly be considered as a basis for disciplinary proceedings against the soldier
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