During the night of January 8–9, two masked 28-year-old men burst into the all-night shop on Zgorzelecka Street. They shouted: “Hand over the cash!” Jadwiga Piętka was alone, but she did not panic. On the contrary. She pulled a plastic baton from under the counter and began striking the attackers with it. “I work too hard to hand money over to thieves so easily,” the courageous woman recounts.
The struggle lasted 2–3 minutes. During it, the victim tore off the perpetrators’ balaclavas, allowing her to get a good look at them. “I am not a fearful person. I am strong. I suppose I could handle one person,” the woman says. The more heavily built thief managed to knock Jadwiga Piętka to the ground. Meanwhile, the other one opened the cash register. “He knew how to do it,” the robbery victim notes.
The perpetrators stole PLN 900 and left the shop. “They were in no particular hurry,” the woman states. The victim ran after the thieves to find out which direction they would take. She then called the police. The officers quickly caught the perpetrators and recovered part of the stolen money.
It turned out that the woman had resisted dangerous criminals. Both men had repeatedly been in conflict with the law. One of them had left prison the previous day. The attackers were taken to pre-trial detention in Lubań, where they are awaiting trial. They face up to 12 years in prison.
The shop has been operating since July 2007. “We were attacked for the first time,” says Piętka, who still has a knee injury. Following press reports, she became recognizable. “It makes me a little embarrassed,” the woman admits, but points out that if she were attacked again, she would act the same way.
“The woman who was robbed tried to defend the property—for that, she deserves words of recognition. She showed great courage. Nevertheless, she took a great risk,” Adam Zieliński, district prosecutor, told the IstotneInformacje.pl portal. He adds that the victim’s actions clearly helped the investigation.
(ii report)