Poland annuls diplomatic passport of ex-minister wanted by prosecutors
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski has announced that the diplomatic passport of Zbigniew Ziobro, the ex-justice minister and a member of the main opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party, has been annulled.
"At the request of the National Prosecutor's Office, I annulled the diplomatic passport of Zbigniew Z.," Sikorski wrote in a post on X on Tuesday, referring to the ex-minister whose surname is abbreviated in line with Polish privacy rules for formally charged suspects.
Last week, a prosecutor filed a motion with a Warsaw court for a three-month pre-trial detention of Ziobro. According to media reports, the Warsaw court is likely to examine the motion in December.
Ziobro, who served as justice minister from 2015 to 2023, faces 26 accusations, including "founding and leading an organised criminal group" that allegedly defrauded over PLN 143 million (EUR 33 mln) from the Justice Fund. Prosecutors say the money was misused, in part, to purchase the Pegasus spyware system.
According to prosecutors, the criminal group purportedly formed by the ex-minister included senior justice ministry officials, individuals holding public positions within the ministry and representatives of organisations that benefited financially from the fund.
A key architect of Poland's controversial judicial reforms, Ziobro spearheaded policies that sparked years of conflict with the European Union over the rule of law and judicial independence.
He denied all the charges in a post on X, claiming he had always acted in accordance with the law. "All decisions concerning the Justice Fund were based on laws," Ziobro explained.
His former deputy, Marcin Romanowski, accused of being a member of the same criminal group, had fled to Budapest, where he reportedly obtained political asylum despite a European Arrest Warrant issued for him. (PAP)
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