The court issued a non-final judgment in the case concerning the tragic events of March 11, 2025, at al. Rzeczypospolitej in Legnica. The 42-year-old defendant Krzysztof P., whom prosecutors accused of murdering one man and injuring another, was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

The judgment was issued on June 25, 2026. However, the court did not share the prosecutor’s position regarding the legal classification of the act.

Prosecutors: he acted with the intent to take a life

The indictment was filed with the court in August 2025. According to investigators’ findings, Krzysztof P. acted out of revenge after an earlier assault in which he himself had been the victim.

Prosecutors alleged that on the evening of March 11, 2025, he attacked two men using a kitchen knife with a blade approximately 8 centimeters long. According to the indictment, he acted with direct intent to murder one of the victims—he allegedly tried to inflict further blows and ultimately wounded him, among other places, in the neck and chest area.

The injured man was taken to hospital, but despite intensive treatment, he died as a result of massive bleeding and progressive cardiorespiratory failure.

The defendant allegedly inflicted injuries on the second man that impaired the functioning of his bodily organs for less than seven days and directly exposed him to serious harm to his health.

Murder carried a sentence ranging from 10 years in prison to life imprisonment. The prosecutor requested a sentence of 20 years in prison.

Court: not murder, but assault resulting in death

However, the District Court reached a different assessment of the incident.

The reasoning stated that the defendant had committed an assault using a dangerous instrument and had acted with direct intent to cause serious bodily injuries, rather than to take a life.

According to the court’s findings, he first attacked one of the victims, stabbing him three times, which led to a life-threatening illness and, consequently, death. He then attacked the second man, causing him less serious injuries.

For this act, the court sentenced Krzysztof P. to 15 years in prison.

The court also ordered the following payments:

  • PLN 5,000 in compensation to the Fund for Assistance to Victims and Post-Penitentiary Assistance,
  • PLN 2,000 in compensation to the surviving victim.

The judgment is not final.

Prosecutors announce an appeal

Investigators disagree with the ruling.

The objections primarily concern the change in the legal classification of the act, the amount of compensation awarded to the victim, and the lack of compensation for the deceased man’s mother.

The prosecution announced that it would request the written reasoning for the judgment and prepare an appeal.

The earlier assault in the background

The case has another thread.

As early as June 2025, the defendant was recognized as a victim in another proceeding concerning an earlier assault that allegedly took place on the same day.

Mariusz F. was finally convicted of participating in the assault on Krzysztof P. According to the court’s findings, he acted together with the man who later died. He allegedly participated in beating and restraining the victim and included the use of a dangerous instrument within the scope of his intent.

The man confessed to the crime and voluntarily submitted to punishment.

The court sentenced him to one year in prison, conditionally suspended for three years, placed him under probation supervision, ordered him to refrain from contacting Krzysztof P., mandated addiction treatment, and imposed compensation of PLN 3,000.

The case of the fatal knife attack will continue before the appellate court if an appeal is filed.