Marek K. nicknamed “Grand Master”, the former leader of the armed criminal group, which operated among others, will soon leave prison in Podkarpattia. The appeal court of Rzeszów reduced the sentence. The man's count includes, among other things: armed robbery and fraud. He was the owner of the disco where 16-year-old Michal Karash was last seen. To this day, it is not known what happened to the teenager and his body has not been found.
The appellate court of the city of Rzeszów reduced the total sentence of Marek K. from 13 to 12 years of imprisonment. The defense attorney requested that the sentence of his client be reduced to 11 years.
As Judge Ewa Preneta-Ambicka, spokeswoman for the Court of Appeal of the city of Rzeszów, told us, the decision to reduce the overall prison sentence of Marek K., including: the current opinion of the convict from the Rzeszów prison.
– The current view is a very positive one – says judge Preneta-Ambicka. This shows that a person “tries to form the right attitude and to work”.
Marek K. He has been in prison in a semi-open cell for several years. He has been working in the semi-free system for several years.
– The convict has future plans, planned opportunities for free work, as well as a place of residence after serving the sentence of deprivation of liberty. Moreover, the convict is trying to return the prescribed compensation, for which he submitted proof of payment, and he also paid the fine in full, – the spokesperson of the appeals court in Rzeszów told us. – All this allows us to give a positive forecast for the future of the condemned, – he added.
Participation in a criminal group, robbery, fraud
Marek K. was accused of having, from March 12, 2002 to June 7, 2002, in Stalowa Wola, Tarnobrzeg, Raklavice (Podkarpackie Voivodeship), Kielce (Swietokrzyskie Voivodeship), Goszyeradow (Ukraine Voivodeship) and U. MD, the head of an organized armed criminal group (founded by MD, the group includes two others), whose purpose is to “commit crimes against life and health and against property”, that is, the crime under Article 258, parts 2 and 3 of the Criminal Code is specified.
§ 2. If the group or association specified in § 1 has an armed nature or aims to commit terrorist crimes, the offender shall be imprisoned for one to 10 years in accordance with § 1, including the armed nature, creation or management of such a group or association shall be punishable by 2 to 15 years.
Another allegation related to fraud. Marek K. was accused of leading an organized gang on March 12, 2002 in the city of Kelce, with the aim of obtaining financial gain in the form of a car worth slightly more than PLN 134,000. PLN misled the European Fund for Leasing (EFL) SA with its registered office in Wrocław about the intention to pay rent installments, as a result of which the Rzeszów branch of this company with K. concluded an operational leasing contract, the subject of which. It was a car. Then, on March 29, 2002, with the help of three other people, he sold the car to an unknown person in the city of Lviv. 286 pair 1 of the Criminal Code.
§ 1. A person who, with the aim of obtaining a financial advantage by misleading him or by using a mistake or not properly understanding the action he took, leads another person to the unfavorable disposal of his property or another person, from 6 months up to 8 years of imprisonment.
The next two charges involved robbery with a firearm.
The first time was held on April 24, 2002 in Goshieradov. Marek K. accompanied by M.D. and two others stole about PLN 52,000 from the bank using firearms and threatening bank employees.
On June 7, 2002, another robbery happened in Stalova Vola. Marek K, PhD, with three other persons “jointly and in consultation”, using firearms and threatening the employees of Przedsiebiorstvo Surovsi Vtornych “VtorStal” SA in Stalowa Wola, stole one hundred thousand zlotys from the company, that is, the crime specified in this Article. 280 pair 2 of the Criminal Code.
§ 2. If the robber uses a firearm, knife or other similar dangerous object or incapacitating means, or in another way that directly threatens life, or together with another person who has such a weapon, object, means or uses the method, from 3 to 20 years of age will be deprived of liberty.
For these crimes, Marek K. in December 2017, he was sentenced by the Tarnobrzeg District Court to a total of 14 years in prison and a fine of PLN 30,000. He was also ordered to pay back the damages caused by the crimes: in the amount of more than PLN 134,000. PLN to the SA European Leasing Fund in Wrocław, in the amount of almost PLN 52,000. PLN to Powszechny Zakład Ubezpieczeń SA in Warsaw for PLN 100,000. PLN to Przedsiębiorstwo Raw Materials Wtórnych “WtórStal” Sp. in Stalova Vola.
Marek K. Beata Olejarka / Agencja SE / News Ist
As a result of the appeal against this sentence, in May 2018 the Court of Appeal in Rzeszów acquitted Marek K. of one charge and changed the sentence to 11 years. The Supreme Court annulled the part of the sentence in which the man was acquitted and sent it for retrial. In 2020, the appeals court upheld the 2017 sentence, and a year later, the Tarnobrzeg District Court – after the components of the sentence became final – issued a joint verdict and sentenced Marek K. to 13 years in prison. After another appeal of the convicted lawyer, the court of appeals left the sentence unchanged, and in December of the same year, the court of appeals reduced the sentence of Marek K. from 13 to 12 years. years in prison.
Great teacher
Marek K. – a 30-year-old man at the time, was the owner of Babylon disco, where Michal Karash used to have fun before he disappeared. The story of the disappearance of a 16-year-old boy from Beliniets in Podkarpackie in September 2023 was widely reported. On August 19, 2000, Michal went to Babylon with his friends, where he was last seen.
In 2002, two years after Michal's disappearance, Marek K. left the country.
Also read: He danced with a mysterious blonde and disappeared. “He is the key to solving this mystery.”
Marek K. was born in Stalova Vola. In his youth, he joined the Foreign Legion. He returned to the country before 2000 and – as prosecutor Adam Cierpyatka, then Tarnobrzeg prosecutor's office, reported to Podkarpackie “Echu Dnya”, “after that a criminal group was born, in which Marek K. played a very important leadership role”.
According to the investigators, K., in particular, friends of the gym, who worked as security guards at his discotheque. “Bavilon” discotheque, according to the investigators, should also be one of the meeting places of the leaders of the group.
This is about the so-called “money changer” from Tarnobrzeg, who – according to the prosecutor's office – was under the leadership of the “Grandmaster” for several months in 2002. The group was said to have operated in the Podkarpackie, Lublin, and Świętokrzyskie voivodships in 2001-2005, where it was responsible for, among other things: a series of brutal attacks on banks and exchange office owners.
At the end of 2013, the court sentenced 6 members of this group to prison and another in another trial. One of the convicts, Tomas K. was cooperating with law enforcement agencies in exchange for a lesser punishment. It was his testimony that led to the indictment of Marek K. As the media reported at that time, this person spoke in detail about the activities of the group and the roles of its individual members.
In 2013, the prosecutor's office ordered the arrest of Marek K. This man was arrested on September 22, 2016 at the New York airport. A day later he was already in Poland.
The prosecutor accused him of leading a criminal group (less than three months), two cases of participation in robbery and fraud. All these crimes happened in 2002. The court sentenced Marek K to 13 years in prison.
Nisko police officers, who were looking for Michal Karash, answered the question of whether they had ever investigated the criminal activity of Marek K. in connection with the disappearance of the 16-year-old youth: “The owner of the disco, Marek K., because of that the prosecution accused him of leading a criminal group in 2002 for four months, on the grounds that the police did not know that the person above the named person may be involved in criminal activity in 2000.
They also reported that Marek K. was questioned in the case of Michal's disappearance and his testimony was “analyzed and confirmed”.
The investigation of the murder of Michal Karash is carried out by the Tarnobrzheg District Prosecutor's Office. One of the last events – as the investigators announced – the interrogation of Marek K.
Also read: This is where Michal used to play before he disappeared. After 24 years, investigators entered the building of the discotheque
“Bavilon” discotheque was located in this building. Today, the OSPMartyna Sokołowska center has its headquarters there
Main photo source: Beata Olejarka / Agencja SE / East News
