A cassation appeal was sent to the Supreme Court against the final sentence of 15 years in prison for the murder more than 30 years ago on Zhelazna Street in Bialystok. According to the findings, the 52-year-old convict stabbed a 40-year-old man in the stomach. This was done by the police officers of the so-called X-Files
The crime happened in May 1992 on Zhelazna Street in Bialystok. The investigation that was carried out at the time was finally stopped after almost a year, because – based on the evidence collected at that time – the perpetrator was not identified.
In the spring of 2022 – at the initiative of the Białystok District Prosecutor's Office – the case was brought to the attention of the police officers of the so-called Archive 10 of the Białystok regional police headquarters, that is, the fight against crimes of the past years, which have not been explained and the perpetrators of which have not been brought to justice. This time, the latest research methods were used to determine the identity of the suspect who committed this murder.
Police arrested him after he left for work (photo from August 2022) Podlasie Police
He was already serving 12 years in prison for the murder of his partner at the time
Thanks to genetic tests and among others, psychological profiling identified the potential criminal. The Bialystok native, now 52, was already serving 12 years in prison for the murder of his then-partner, two months after the crime was committed in May 1992.
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This man was arrested at the end of August 2022. This man was captured by counter-terrorists a few moments after leaving work in his apartment in Bialystok.
The court found that the criminal acted with intent
Prosecutors charged him with first-degree murder. According to his conclusion, during the conflict and fight, he hit the victim's stomach with a knife. It all happened in a group of people who met together and drank alcohol.
The court of first instance assessed that the guilt was unquestionable, but that the criminal acted with the probable intention and not directly to kill. The most important evidence – apart from the opinion of an expert in the field of genetics and forensic medicine – was the testimony of several people and some comments of the defendant himself, which were already presented during the second investigation. This is about the confession of stabbing him once (the accused told about the sudden attack on him and the need to defend himself).
The man was previously convicted of murdering his partner (photo from August 2022) Podlasie Police
The trial for the murder of his partner was cancelled
The court sentenced him to 15 years in prison under the current Criminal Code, not the provisions in force at the time of the crime – as the prosecution has denied. He noted that the code of that time still included and carried the death penalty – although it was no longer carried out – the death penalty, and that the maximum penalty for murder in the current code was life imprisonment. He also noted that the 52-year-old's conviction for the murder of his then-partner had already been overturned, meaning that he was treated as a person with no criminal record.
At the Białystok District Court, the prosecution sought a 25-year prison sentence in this case, but ultimately did not appeal. The defense lawyer appealed against the court's verdict, asking for recognition that the accused acted for the purpose of defense and acquittal, or for a lighter punishment to be imposed.
In 1992, there was not enough evidence (photo from August 2022) Podlasie Police
The court rejected this defense requirement
The Court of Appeal in Bialystok upheld the sentence. He assessed that there was no doubt about the crime and the culprit, and that the version of an accidental stabbing was only a line of defense. The court also rejected the possibility of self-defense in this case and noted that the criminal did not help the victim after the attack.
According to the information obtained by the Polish press agency in the Supreme Court, the defendant's defense lawyer filed a cassation appeal against the final verdict. A hearing date has not yet been set.
Main photo source: Podlasie Police
