Fatal Crash in Kraków: Court Orders Detention for Driver Hubert B.

A Kraków court has ordered the pre-trial detention of 26-year-old Hubert B. following a fatal crash that killed two pedestrians and critically injured an infant.

Court Rationale for Detention

Judge Maciej Czajka stated that the court cited the risk of the suspect tampering with evidence and the possibility of a severe sentence under the Code of Criminal Procedure, given the circumstances of the charged offense. The decision to detain Hubert B. is not final.

Prosecution Charges

According to the District Prosecutor’s Office in Kraków, spokesperson prosecutor Tomasz Waszczuk announced on Monday, August 21, that Hubert B. has been charged with intentionally violating road safety rules on August 22 of this year while driving a Volkswagen. The suspect failed to obey a 30 kilometers per hour speed limit sign, resulting in a loss of control over the vehicle.

He veered onto a sidewalk where three people—two adults and a child—were moving correctly, unintentionally causing a road accident where the two adults died the same day, while the child suffered multi-organ injuries posing a real threat to its life. Consequently, he was charged under Article 177, paragraph 2 of the Penal Code.

Driver’s Testimony and Speed Discrepancies

Hubert B. did not plead guilty to the charged offenses, explaining that uneven road pavement caused him to lose control of the vehicle. He stated that he tried to recover from the slip without success, causing the car to spin and strike pedestrians, and insisted he was not moving at an excessive speed.

Prosecution findings indicate the driver was traveling at approximately 70 kilometers per hour in a 30-kilometer zone, while Hubert B. claimed he was not driving fast though he could not remember his exact speed. The crash killed a 32-year-old woman and a 32-year-old man, leaving their eight-month-old baby critically injured, with upcoming days determining whether the infant survives.

Passengers and Local Context

Alongside the 26-year-old driver, three passengers aged 27 to 28 were traveling in the car, all originating from the Masovian and Lesser Poland voivodeships and already questioned by authorities.

Marek Podmokły reported on Wyborcza.pl that police receive an increasing number of recordings documenting dangerous behavior each year, with 3,200 reports submitted to the Lesser Poland “Stop Road Aggression” inbox in 2025, marking nearly 900 more than the previous year. Meanwhile, Jarosław Sidorowicz noted on Wyborcza.pl that residents near the scene of Saturday’s tragedy have complained for years about drivers notoriously violating speed limits or engaging in street races in Kraków’s Zabłocie and Kotlarski Bridge area.