Polish far-right activist faces new charges over social media posts
Prosecutors have brought new charges against Polish far-right anti-immigration activist Robert Bakiewicz on Thursday following his social posts targeting public officials, migrants and Germans, bringing the total number of allegations against him to five.
The first of the new charges concerns a post on X from July 3rd of this year. According to the prosecutor, the suspect slandered public officials, including judges and prosecutors, by writing that they were "selling out and betraying Poland" and journalists by writing that they were subservient to their "German masters." According to prosecutors from the Gorzow Wielkopolski District Prosecutor's Office, such claims undermine public trust in public officials and journalists and humiliate them in the eyes of the public.
The second charge is inciting hatred based on national, ethnic, and racial differences. According to the prosecutor's office, this occurred through content published by the suspect between June 19 and July 18 of this year on X and YouTube. According to the prosecutor, the posts and statements posted there aroused feelings of strong aversion and hostility towards German nationals and migrants.
Bakiewicz commented on the situation on Thursday after his appearance at the prosecutor's office, where he denied any wrongdoing and claimed that the proceedings are politically motivated.
"I told the prosecutor that I was pleading not guilty, that the proceedings were being conducted intentionally and were politically motivated. I hope the prosecutor will be held accountable for participating in what, in my opinion, is a crime, a manipulation of the law, exploiting his position to bring charges against me," Bakiewicz said after leaving the prosecutor's office.
The latest allegations add to three others that Bakiewicz is facing, some of which prosecutors deem to be of a hooligan nature. One of them includes his appearance at a protest in June at the Polish-German border, following which Bakiewicz was charged with verbally insulting uniformed officers. If found guilty, the politician could spend up to three years in prison.
He remains under police supervision, must notify authorities if he leaves his residence, and is prohibited from approaching Polish-German border checkpoints at a distance of less than one kilometre, as part of the preventive measures against him.
Bakiewicz is known for leading the anti-immigration Border Defence Movement, whose stated aim is to "protect the Polish border from mass migration and related threats," and which has been involved in forcing asylum seekers who reached Poland back across the border to Germany. (PAP)
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