P. will only be eligible for conditional early release after serving 20 years of his sentence, and will then be prohibited from contacting her for 15 years. The court also awarded the injured party PLN 50,000 in compensation and ordered the defendant to cover the costs of the proceedings and the legal representation costs of the injured party’s attorney.
In August 2012, the Legnica District Prosecutor’s Office filed an indictment with the court against Tomasz P., now 35, from Bytom, who on December 3, 2012, attempted to kill his 32-year-old former partner.
The investigation established that Tomasz P. had been in a relationship with the injured party since 2009. The relationship was often marked by personal conflicts. From July 2011, the couple lived in Legnica. In September of the same year, Tomasz P. was placed in pre-trial detention in connection with an investigation conducted by the Katowice prosecutor’s office into a series of frauds committed by Tomasz P. while running a business in Katowice involving financial-market management and economic consulting (Tomasz P. has already been finally convicted for these offenses).
While held in pre-trial detention, the aforementioned man wrote numerous uncensored letters threatening the injured party with death. He also called the woman several times a month, demanding that she remain in a relationship with him and claiming that if she left, she would die.
While running his brokerage business, after he had already encountered financial problems, Tomasz P. bought a firearm without a permit in January 2010 and subsequently possessed two MAG 98 and Walther pistols, caliber 9 mm, as well as 18 rounds of ammunition for them.
The aforementioned man repeatedly displayed the pistols he possessed to clients in order to inspire respect and fear. At the same time, in January 2010, Tomasz P. came into possession of two identity cards issued in different people’s names but bearing his photograph, as well as a category B driving license. He showed these documents to several clients in his office, claiming that they allowed him to register under false details and that, thanks to them, no one would find him.
On November 23, 2012, the Katowice Regional Court lifted his detention after an indictment was filed against Tomasz P. for multimillion-zloty frauds against more than one hundred people. The same day, the man went to the injured party in Legnica. For many days there, refusing to accept her opposition and using psychological violence in the form of blackmail and intimidation, he tried to persuade her to remain in a relationship with him.
The aforementioned man threatened the woman with suicide and with killing her. He held a knife to her abdomen and neck. Paralyzed by fear, the woman did not notify law enforcement.
On November 26, 2012, the defendant took the injured party to the area around Grodziec Castle, bringing a backpack containing a rope and an axe. There, he forced the woman to promise that they would get back together. After returning home, the injured party hid from the defendant. However, he called her and threatened to kill her.
On December 3, 2012, the injured party went to work. At around 8:00 a.m., Tomasz P. called her and asked about their future together. A few minutes later, he came to the office. On the pretext of handing over keys, he sent the woman to the secretary’s office. After a brief conversation, he pulled an axe from his backpack and struck the injured party several times on the head and arms, which she used to shield herself. Female employees leaving the elevator saw this. The disoriented attacker struck the woman one final time, driving the axe into her head, and then fled.
The injured party was taken to hospital, where effective life-saving treatment was provided.
Tomasz P. was arrested on December 4, 2012, near Blachownia, close to Częstochowa. He did not resist. He was placed in pre-trial detention.
The woman suffered, among other injuries, a chop wound to the head with a fracture of the skull bones and damage to the brain, as well as chop wounds to her left forearm and both hands, with damage to the bones, muscles and tendons. The injuries caused the injured party a serious, incurable and long-term illness, as well as an illness that posed a real threat to her life.
When questioned as a suspect, Tomasz P. admitted only to possessing false documents. He did not admit guilt in the attempted murder. He stated that he did not remember the circumstances of the incident. He also denied ever possessing firearms. Regarding the criminal threats, he provided no explanation.
Before the court, he upheld his statements. Due to doubts concerning Tomasz P.’s mental health, he underwent psychiatric observation. Doctors determined that the aforementioned man was sane. They indicated, however, that the defendant had a psychopathic personality, as he displayed a tendency to deceive and manipulate, shallowness of feelings, superficial charm, a lack of guilt, a lack of empathy, instrumental treatment of other people, and reactivity to perceived disregard, insult or betrayal. Tomasz P. was also diagnosed with feigned mental disorders after the incident. The experts ruled out, with regard to the attempted murder, acting in a state of intense emotion and emotional disorders related to stress, as well as mental disorders related to the use of psychotropic medication, which the aforementioned man had feigned during the investigation.
Tomasz P. has a higher education degree and is a computer engineer. He had no prior convictions before committing the crime. For the attempted murder and the remaining offenses, he faced a sentence of 8 to 15 years, 25 years, or even life imprisonment.
Following the trial before the Legnica Regional Court, a judgment was issued in the case on November 17, 2015. The court found Tomasz P. guilty of all the acts with which he had been charged. The aforementioned man received:
- for attempted murder – 25 years’ imprisonment
- for illegal possession of firearms – 1 year and 6 months’ imprisonment
- for preparing to use false documents – 6 months’ imprisonment
- for making threats – 1 year and 6 months’ imprisonment.
The court imposed an aggregate sentence of 25 years’ imprisonment. It also ruled that the defendant would be eligible for conditional early release no sooner than after serving 20 years of his sentence and prohibited him from contacting or approaching the injured party for 15 years. It also awarded the injured party PLN 50,000 in compensation. The convicted man was ordered to cover the costs of the proceedings, pay nearly PLN 4,000 in legal representation costs for the injured party’s attorney, and was assessed a fee of PLN 600 in the case. The judgment, which was essentially consistent with the prosecutor’s requests, was deemed fair. The ruling is not final.
Liliana Łukasiewicz, press spokesperson for the Legnica District Prosecutor’s Office/ii