Police in Poland have charged two officers with dereliction of duty after a 14-year-old girl froze to death in Andrychów last November.
Police Officers Charged
Prosecutors have charged two police officers with dereliction of duty and unintentionally exposing a minor to direct danger of life or serious bodily harm. According to Radio Kraków, investigators may also charge two additional officers. The father reported his missing daughter in the morning when she failed to arrive at school. The girl had last contacted her father to say she wasn’t feeling well. None of the officers charged have admitted to the wrongdoing.
Incident Details
The incident occurred in late November 2023 when 14-year-old Natalia was heading to a bus stop in Andrychów to get to her high school in Kętach. At around 8:15 AM, she called her father saying she felt unwell and then lost consciousness. Approximately 5.5 hours later, at 1:30 PM, a passerby found her, moved her to a nearby store, and with store clerks attempted resuscitation. Paramedics transported her to the hospital with hypothermia. She died nearly a day later from acute circulatory-respiratory failure due to hypothermia.
Search and Police Response
The girl’s father began searching for her from early morning. According to reports, at 9:16 AM, he called his brother asking for help from a police officer to locate his daughter’s phone. By 9:36 AM, he had gone to the police station. It was reported that police officers instructed the father to wait an hour for another officer to take his case. At 12:36 PM, the father left the police station without resolution.