Nowy Sącz. The president of a municipal company allegedly caused an accident and refused to take a breathalyzer test. He heard the accusation

On November 9, a few minutes after 5:30 p.m., two passenger cars collided on Barska Street in Nowy Sącz. When the emergency services arrived, the Peugeot was lying on its roof in a ditch. The driver of the vehicle, a 52-year-old woman, was injured and taken to hospital. Her condition was not very serious – she got out of the car on her own. She traveled alone.

The Mercedes was standing on the road. However, there was no driver in the area.

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– The Mercedes driver drove away after the incident, but was quickly detained by policemen – informed us Commissioner Justyna Basiaga, spokeswoman for the Nowy Sącz police. The man was caught by the police about a kilometer from the scene of the incident – this information was confirmed by the prosecutor's office.

It turned out to be the president of the municipal company Nova, Krzysztof K.

As we learned unofficially, the Mercedes driver, for unknown reasons, left his lane and collided with a Peugeot approaching from the opposite direction.

After being detained, he refused to submit to a breath alcohol test, so he was taken to hospital, where blood was taken for testing.

– The perpetrators were charged. The suspect did not admit to committing the offense he was accused of and refused to provide explanations – Sylwia Lenart-Cabała, the district prosecutor in Nowy Sącz, informed us. At this moment, Krzysztof K. is to be held liable under Article 177 of the Penal Code, i.e. for causing a traffic accident. He faces three years in prison. The man's driving license was taken away.

However, investigators have not yet received the results of toxicological tests. If it turns out that K. was drunk, the prosecutor's office may bring additional charges against him. Prosecutors have not yet commented on the issue of possible escape from the scene of the accident.

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Despite the accusation regarding the accident, Krzysztof K. returned to work. We contacted the Nova company secretariat, but they told us that “the president will not comment on his private matters in the company.” We replied that this was not the president's private matter. In response we heard: – What if you had a private accident? Would they also want to demand something from you at work? This is his private matter. The president will not comment and will not answer the phone, said the company's representative. At the same time, she confirmed that Krzysztof K. was staying at the company's premises.

So we called Krzysztof K.'s private cell phone, who referred us to his lawyer.

– I confirm that Krzysztof K. was charged with causing a road accident on November 9. Evidence proceedings are ongoing and we have submitted an application for access to the files. Mr. Krzysztof K. was not charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, nor was he charged with leaving the scene of an accident – said attorney Daniel Augustyn in an interview with tvn24.pl.

Augustyn also confirmed that K. did not admit to the act and refused to provide explanations. However, he did not want to answer a number of other questions, including whether the president was driving under the influence of alcohol or even whether he was behind the wheel of the Mercedes. – I can only confirm that blood tests were carried out – said attorney Augustyn.

The city authorities do not want to respond to the allegations against the president of the municipal company. We tried many times to contact the mayor of Nowy Sącz before publishing the article. However, Ludomir Handzel did not answer the phone and did not respond to the text message.

– We demand a clear position from the city authorities and the company's supervisory board regarding the president. The reports about the president are very disturbing and out of concern for the city's reputation, we expect the president to provide specific information on this matter – the councilor told us PIS Michał Kądziołka.

– Before the city council session, we tried to obtain information from councilors forming the majority, but they were confused. Nobody wanted to comment on this matter. The city hall only briefly informed us that city cars have not had an accident recently, and the city hall does not monitor the activities of subordinate employees during private hours – added councilor Kądziołka. The town hall in Nowy Sącz also sent a message with this content to local journalists.

The head of Ludomir Handzel's Koalicja Nowy Sącz councilors' club, Krzysztof Ziaja, did not want to comment on the matter. Ziaja sat on the city council together with Krzysztof K for a short while. – Until I learn the official position of the police or prosecutor's office, I will not comment on this matter. I don't know the details, the councilor told us.

According to last year's financial report, Krzysztof K. has a Mercedes GLC from 2017. For a used car from about seven years ago, you currently have to pay between PLN 100,000 and 150,000, according to offers posted on automotive websites.

Krzysztof K. is one of the closest collaborators of President Ludomir Handzel. In 2018, K. became a city councilor, but quickly resigned in favor of a job in a municipal company.

This is not the first time that Nova's president has faced accusations. In July 2023 – as “Gazeta Krakowska” reported – a trial began in which Krzysztof K. is accused of, among others, for improperly accepting waste and storing it outside the landfill without permission. Some of this waste was said to be hazardous to the environment. According to our information, this process has not ended yet.