Warsaw. Accident on Trasa Łazienkowska. Material from “Uwaga!” TVN. Who is Łukasz Ż?

The accident occurred on September 15 on Trasa Łazienkowska in Warsaw. On a wide and almost empty road at night, a speeding Volkswagen hit the back of a properly driving Ford in which a family of four was returning home.

– When I got there, one of the people was already covered with a bag, he was a 37-year-old. The woman and children were in ambulances, their condition was serious – says journalist Łukasz Rytel from the Miejski Reporter website.

In a second, the life of the family in the Ford turned into a nightmare. The 37-year-old man died on the spot. His wife and children – an 8-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy – were taken to hospital in serious condition.

The Volkswagen that hit the Ford was driven by four young men and a 20-year-old woman, Paulina, who was injured. Their friends were behind them in another car. According to the police, the cars could have been racing. After the collision, they all allegedly worked out a false version of events together, and the driver fled.

– I picked up the phone and called him. I asked: “What about Paulina?” and he said: “What should I tell you?” He said he had killed a man. He already knew. I asked: “What man? What happened?” He said he had killed a man and was running away. I asked what about my daughter, what man he had killed. He hung up,” Paulina's mother told “Uwaga!” TVN.

Although the 20-year-old woman in the Volkswagen required immediate help, none of the men provided it. What's more, they allegedly chased away witnesses who wanted to help the woman.

– One of the witnesses, it was a woman, ran up to Paulina with a first aid kit, and they told her to “Get the f… out of her” – recalls Paulina's mother.

– These people not only did not provide help, but also prevented one of the passengers who was wronged from being helped, and even chased away people who offered help and wanted to help – confirms Piotr Skiba from the District Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw.

– That was the plan, to blame Paulina, that she was driving. They said she probably wouldn't survive. And they told him to f… off, Łukasz – adds Paulina's mother.

Łukasz, 26, met Paulina, 20, who lives permanently with her mother in Sweden, just a few months ago during the girl's visit to Poland.

– They were a couple for a very short time, around the beginning of August – says Paulina's mother. And she adds: – I didn't know this Łukasz at all, he came to Paulina 1.5 weeks ago. He was very polite, nice, friendly. I asked what he did, he said he had his own car rental company. I asked Paulina: why do you need a boyfriend in Poland? You live in Sweden. I think she didn't know what kind of person he was, what he did, because she probably wouldn't have gotten involved with him.

Who is Łukasz Ż. really? We reached out to a long-time friend of the man, who agreed to talk about him.

– I wasn't surprised at all that it was him. If you lead such a lifestyle, drive a car like that for so many years, a tragedy is bound to happen eventually – we were told.

– He lost his driving license several times. For driving under the influence, for driving illegally. I know that he once rammed a fence and drove onto someone's property. He went to prison for that – adds our interviewee.

– He had money and he always flaunted it a lot. He always had a lot of cash on him. I know he changed cars several times. They were expensive cars – he says.

What did Łukasz Ż. do?

– In my opinion, he was a dealer because he always had large amounts of cocaine on him, and it is an expensive drug – our interlocutor assumes.

– He stood out. An expensively dressed guy who had a lot of money on him and was constantly pouring alcohol into himself, constantly pouring lines of coke on everyone, and on top of that he was loud, high-pitched. He always drew attention – says our interviewee.

– I think that the daughter did not know his past – says Paulina's mother. And she adds: – She is the most wonderful daughter in the world, my friend, not only a daughter. She simply met the wrong person.

It was a coincidence that Paulina ended up in a Volkswagen speeding down Trasa Łazienkowska. A few days earlier, Łukasz Ż. had visited the girl in Sweden and, together with her and her mother, had flown to Poland two days before the accident.

– The three of us came because my family celebrated my 40th birthday – says Paulina’s mother.

– There is a lot of hate towards her. They wish her death, that she would die. For what reason? She didn't want to hurt anyone. She wasn't the one driving – emphasizes the mother of the 20-year-old and admits: – I am also angry at her inside, very angry, but let them not hate us, because we are suffering too. There were three of them, she was one.

After the accident, Łukasz Ż. contacted Paulina’s mother.

– He kept calling me all Sunday. That he was running away, to Spain. (…) The last call I got from him was probably around 6 or 7 o'clock. I was shouting at him, and he said: “Why are you shouting at me, it's not my fault, I wasn't driving!” I was swearing at him, I said: “You confessed 20 minutes ago. What the f… are you doing?” He admitted that he was driving, I have it in the messages on my phone – says Paulina's mother.

Łukasz Ż. fled, but not to Spain, as he had announced, but to Germany. Five days after the accident, he reported to a hospital in Lübeck, because the injuries he himself sustained in the collision required medical attention. The medics notified the police, who arrested the man.

Łukasz Ż. is waiting for extradition to Poland, and the prosecutor's office assures that in the case of Germany there will be no problems with handing the man over to the Polish justice system.

See the entire “Uwaga!” TVN material