Police deny accusations following death of Sgt Sieron in Kraśnik Górny
The Police Headquarters spokesman responded to a post by politician Możdżonek, who linked the officer's death to staffing shortages. Sergeant Natan Sieron was killed after being shot by a 33-year-old man during an intervention.
Police Headquarters spokesman: "Please do not turn tragedy into politics"
According to wydarzenia.interia.pl, the press spokesman of the Commander-in-Chief of Police, Deputy Inspector Andrzej Fijołek, issued a statement in response to a post by politician Marcin Możdżonek, who linked the death of Staff Sergeant Natan Sieron to staffing shortages in Polish police.
"Polish Police currently numbers almost 104,000 officers – the most in its history. The vacancy rate is approximately 6 per cent. There is therefore no basis whatsoever for presenting the tragic death of Sgt. Natan Sieron as a consequence of the police's staffing situation," Fijołek wrote.
The spokesman emphasised that Sieron was performing his official duties and was wearing a vest bearing the word "POLICE". "Nevertheless, the perpetrator fired a shot in his direction," the statement reads. Fijołek noted that it was the attacker's actions that led to the officer's death, and not – as Możdżonek suggested – his two years of service, the number of vacancies, or theses concerning training. "The death of a police officer demands respect and responsibility in one's words, not the building of a political narrative," the spokesman concluded.
Możdżonek pointed to "systemic problems"
Fijołek's post was a direct response to an earlier publication by Marcin Możdżonek. The politician offered condolences to the deceased's family and loved ones, and then stated that Polish police "are struggling with serious staffing shortages". He contended that a young officer with only two years of service was sent into an active operation, when – in his view – he should still have been serving a probationary period.
Możdżonek listed several problems requiring solutions, including matters of regulations, training, state support, and "the psychological and tactical advantage of the criminal over the officer". However, he noted that he was not pointing to political responsibility, but rather to "systemic problems to be resolved".
Dramatic intervention in Kraśnik Górny
The incident occurred on Thursday at approximately 11 o'clock on the grounds of a private property in the village of Kraśnik Górny in the Lower Silesian voivodeship. Officers from the District Police Headquarters in Bolesławiec were conducting proceedings against a 33-year-old man suspected of theft.
During the intervention, the man suddenly drew a firearm. The prosecution stated that the perpetrator "acting with direct intent to deprive one of the officers of life, fired a shot from a Browning HP semi-automatic pistol, calibre 9 mm, in his direction".
The seriously wounded officer was transported to hospital, where doctors fought to save his life. On Friday evening, the Police Headquarters announced the death of 29-year-old Staff Sergeant Natan Sieron. "He departed while performing his duty to the end – faithful to the words of the oath: 'even at the risk of one's life'," Polish Police wrote in an official statement.
Source: Google News PL — Crime (pl)