Hooligan cop suspended

25th November 2011

A police officer caught on video tape kicking and punching a man has been suspended from the force and now faces a criminal investigation.

The plain-clothes policeman became a familiar figure on television news and the internet after footage surfaced of him kicking a cowering protestor who was trapped against a wall during the rioting that marred November 11 Independence Day celebrations in Warsaw.

After a couple of kicks to the face, the policeman, who has not been named, also landed a few punches as the victim was wrestled to the ground. He then kicked the prostrate man in the head.

His televised behaviour, which prompted police chief General Andrzej Matejuk to say the police had no place for officers who broke the law, prompted rapid action from the authorities.

“After the events of November 11, this officer went on sick leave, and after returning to work he was suspended from duty,” said Maciej Karczynski, spokesman for Warsaw police headquarters.
His suspension means that he will also be on half salary.

The police also launched an internal inquiry into the affair, which is still continuing, and following in their footsteps, the Warsaw prosecutor’s office opened their own investigation into the affair.

But the man he assaulted is also in hot water, and this could complicate legal proceedings. Daniel K. is currently being detained for assaulting a police officer and will spend the next three months behind bars as criminal proceedings against him take shape.

Whatever the legal outcome against Daniel K., the well publicised video footage of the policeman’s violent actions has come as a deep embarrassment to the police.

The police have strived, with varying degrees of success, to shed an image and reputation cast in communist days which defined them as a law unto themselves, and too willing to use the baton given the right, or any, opportunity.

Newspapers have carried images taken from the footage, with lurid headlines such as “Brutal policeman” attached.

The slow progress of both the internal police and criminal investigations despite the existence of what many people regard as clear evidence of a violent assault has prompted some people to question whether the law is being applied evenly and regardless of anybody’s profession and standing.

“The policeman is suspended while the man he beat is sitting inside a prison accused of assaulting a police officer: where is justice?” asked one person on an internet forum attached to the website of the newspaper Dziennik.