The president of Wrocław with allegations. The prosecutor's office on the reasons for Jacek Sutryk's arrest. Defense attorney for violation of a constitutional principle

The spokesman for the National Prosecutor's Office, Prosecutor Przemysław Nowak, said at the Friday conference about the four charges heard by the mayor of Wrocław, Jacek Sutryk. One is corruption and three are fraud charges.

– The corruption charge consists in providing the former rector of Collegium Humanum with a financial benefit in exchange for receiving a diploma of completion of postgraduate studies MBA (Master of Business Administration – editor's note), which in fact was not completed, i.e. in exchange for receiving a document certifying untruth – Nowak said.

The three remaining charges concern the commission of the crime of fraud by the mayor of Wrocław. According to the prosecutor's office, Sutryk used a false document to mislead representatives of several local government entities and obtain undue benefits related to sitting on supervisory boards.

“In this way, Jacek S., for serving as a member of the Supervisory Board, received undue remuneration in the amount of PLN 230,000 in three local government companies,” the National Prosecutor's Office announced.

It was added that Paweł C. received a financial benefit amounting to PLN 75,000. PLN for concluding a consultancy contract with a joint-stock company whose majority shareholder is the Commune of Wrocław. The prosecutor's office reports that the former rector of the university was given a personal benefit in the form of membership in the Activity Council.

The prosecutor imposed bail on Jacek Sutryk in the amount of PLN 200,000. PLN and police supervision combined with a ban on contacting specific participants in the proceedings.

Prosecutor Nowak also referred to the arrest of the president of Wrocław at his home.

– Among the detained people was the mayor of Wrocław, Jacek S., and three former employees of Collegium Humanum. These arrests were necessary due to the need to carry out activities with these people at the same time. This necessity, in turn, resulted from the fact that the charges brought against them were subject-wise. These people cooperated in committing, according to the prosecutor, the crimes charged against them, he explained.

Read also: Jacek Sutryk heard the charges and returned to work. “Why should there be a resignation?”

He added that this was necessary so that the detained people, among other things, would not be able to agree on a “common, false version of events.”

– The prosecutor predicted that there would be a need for a confrontation between the suspects, which happened, because their explanations were contradictory and the prosecutor actually conducted these confrontations with the suspects yesterday evening and today, which was possible thanks to the fact that they were detained – said the prosecutor.

On Friday morning, Sutryk told journalists in Wrocław that he did not admit to the charges brought against him and assured that he had nothing to hide.

The allegations were commented on at Friday's conference by the attorney-in-fact of the mayor of Wrocław, Łukasz Błaszczak.

– In our opinion, they are completely groundless, but the measures used in these proceedings, including: detaining Mr. Jacek Sutryk and transporting him to Katowice violates the constitutional principle of proportionality, which also applies in criminal proceedings. You could have invited Mr. Jacek Sutryk to Katowice at a suitable time, and Mr. Jacek would have shown up at that time, especially since he had given evidence as a witness two years earlier and now it was repeated. There was no need to use such drastic measures, the attorney told journalists.

He added that Sutryk is not prohibited from “performing his position.” – He still uses the mandate, he is even obliged to report to work every day – he said.

To subsequent questions from journalists, attorney Łukasz Błaszczak only repeated that he “cannot provide an answer.”

In the investigation conducted at the Katowice prosecutor's office, Former PiS MEP Karol Karski was also charged (he agreed to provide data – editor's note) and Michał J., vice-rector of the former Collegium Humanum, and his wife Katarzyna J., who was responsible for recruiting students.

Proc. Katarzyna Calów-Jaszewska from the press department of the National Prosecutor's Office informed that Michał J. and Katarzyna J. allegedly committed “a number of acts related to accepting financial benefits in exchange for issuing false documents confirming the completion of Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) postgraduate studies”, Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) and Doctor of Laws (LL.D.).” Michał J. was charged with 22 charges and his wife with 30 charges. The prosecutor's office filed applications for temporary arrest against both of them.

Karol Karski was charged with corruption related to invoking influence in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in order to obtain positive opinions on running branches of the former Collegium Humanum university in Prague, Bratislava and Andijan, and in the case of the branch in Slovakiapositive consideration of the case regarding the issuance of an opinion in the field of pedagogy.

Karski allegedly committed this act in exchange for a financial benefit in the form of Paweł C. paying for a survey report in the amount of PLN 14,760.00 and election billboards for the European Parliament in the amount of PLN 22,195.35.

The prosecutor's office granted bail in the amount of PLN 50,000 to the former PiS MEP. zloty.

Karol Karski was not detained, but appeared at the request of the prosecutor's office. As prosecutor Przemysław Nowak explained on Friday, the difference is that the act he was accused of “is not related to other people.”

– This is a different type of allegation, unrelated in substance to the previous allegations – he said.

Karski pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The chairman of the supervisory board of the Wrocław airport, Marian D, was also charged in the investigation into irregularities at Collegium Humanum. According to the prosecutor's office, he participated in a crime related to providing a financial advantage to the former rector of Collegium Humanum. D. was also accused of certifying untruths in documents regarding the completion of postgraduate studies by other people in exchange for receiving financial benefits. Investigators granted property bail to D. in the amount of PLN 100,000. zloty.

So far, in the investigation into the Collegium Humanum, a total of 55 suspects have been charged with a total of 196 charges.

The Collegium Humanum case concerns irregularities at this private university and so far CBA About 30 people were detained there – including: former rector of Collegium Humanum Paweł C. and former MEP Ryszard C. A total of 150 charges were brought against the detainees (most of which were against Paweł C.). CH is currently called Varsovia University of Business and Applied Sciences. The private university was established in 2018 in Warsaw. It offered much faster and cheaper courses compared to its competitors, thanks to which it was possible to obtain an MBA diploma. Such documents allow, among others: to apply for positions on supervisory boards of State Treasury companies.