The tragedy occurred in early October 2019 on Jaworzyńska Street in Legnica. At the time, 19-year-old Szczepan W. declared that he would drive two girls, 10-year-old Ola and 11-year-old Wiktoria, from Jawor to Legnica. As reported by tvn24.pl:

Investigators determined that, while driving along Jaworzyńska Street and overtaking a bus, the young driver failed to adjust his speed to the road conditions. The speed limit on this section was 70 km/h. An expert assessed that the Fiat was travelling at between 95 and 115 km/h. It was also raining and the road surface was wet. The accused lost control of the vehicle, drove onto the strip of greenery separating the carriageways, and then entered the lane for traffic travelling in the opposite direction. There he collided with an oncoming minibus. After the collision, the car went into a ditch.

The ten-year-old died at the scene, while the older girl died in hospital five days later. The driver himself was also taken there, seriously injured. He spent several weeks in the hospital.

According to the findings of a computer forensics expert, while driving, W. used a mobile phone and an online messenger to talk to three female friends whom he was supposed to meet after driving the girls home.

In April 2021, the man was sentenced to three years in prison. But he did not go there. At the beginning of September, the District Court in Legnica considered the defence’s application to postpone the execution of the sentence for one year on health grounds. (According to Szczepan W.’s defence lawyer, the convicted man’s physical and mental health had not been examined thoroughly enough at that time.) The application was rejected.

The defence filed an interlocutory appeal. The result? On 20 October, the case went before the Regional Court in Legnica. As Szczepan W.’s representative argued, a one-year postponement of the sentence would give the convicted man time to stabilise his mental health.

The judge upheld the decision of the court of first instance, finding the appeal unfounded. He added that the defence had not convincingly demonstrated that there were grounds to postpone the execution of W.’s sentence.

Asked by the media whether he felt remorse, Szczepan W. replied that he had expressed it repeatedly in the courtroom, but had not apologised to the girls’ family because he felt he should not disturb their peace.

He also noted that, after the way he had been portrayed in the media, he was afraid of how other prisoners would treat him.