Deputy Head of Presidential Chancellery Adam Andruszkiewicz summoned as suspect in 12-year-old signature fraud investigation.
Political Figure Summoned After Years
Adam Andruszkiewicz, Deputy Head of the Presidential Chancellery, announced on Wednesday, February 4, that he had been summoned to the prosecutor’s office as a suspect. According to “Gazeta Wyborcza,” the investigation aims to determine if approximately 500 signatures on nomination lists for candidates of the All-Polish Youth were falsified. These candidates ran in the 2014 Podlaskie regional elections under the National Movement committee.
Politician Responds to Allegations
“For years, part of the mainstream media has insinuated my involvement in this matter. However, no concrete evidence has ever been presented to support this false thesis. For me, as a public figure who has gained increasing voter support over the years and currently holds a high position cooperating with the President, this is an extremely difficult and wrongful situation,” the politician wrote. Andruszkiewicz also assured that he is cooperating with the investigators.
Why Did the Investigation Take So Long?
According to TVN24 reports, the District Prosecutor’s Office in Białystok has been conducting the investigation since 2016. Elżbieta Pieniążek, then head of the regional prosecutor’s office, supervised it. According to “Rzeczpospolita,” she was appointed to this position by the then Prosecutor General and Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro.
Controversy Surrounding Case Transfer
Pieniążek reportedly persuaded investigators to obtain handwriting samples from Andruszkiewicz for examination, but prosecutors argued this could only be done after lifting his parliamentary immunity. However, Pieniążek stated that the collected evidence was insufficient for this purpose. “It’s interesting that prosecutors never previously indicated what charges they would want to bring against Andruszkiewicz,” informants told TVN24 reporters.
Case Transfers and Examination Results
The investigators agreed to summon Andruszkiewicz as a witness to obtain his handwriting samples. On October 11, Prosecutor Pieniążek requested in a “very urgent” manner that the district prosecutor hand over all case files. She then transferred them to the National Prosecutor’s Office, forcing investigators to cancel the search and questioning. The files returned to them a month after the local government elections.
Kaczyński’s Reaction
“Manual steering of prosecutor’s actions has entered another phase. In the crosshairs of the neo-prosecutor’s office is Minister Andruszkiewicz. Twelve years after the incident, with numerous graphological opinions confirming his innocence and in the absence of new evidence, he is suddenly to become a suspect. The clock is ticking. Next year is elections. This lawlessness will end,” wrote PiS leader Jarosław Kaczyński.
