Warsaw police have arrested suspects in a brutal 2023 robbery where a 62-year-old man was tied up and forced to reveal his safe’s location.
Brutal Robbery in Warsaw
Officers from Warsaw’s Department for Combating Terrorism and Murder have arrested perpetrators of a brutal robbery that occurred in June 2023 in the Warsaw district of Białołęka. The attackers tied up their victim and, threatening him with an axe, forced him to hand over keys to a safe. The criminals stole cash and jewelry and left the victim in the basement.
International Investigation and Arrests
Capital city police, working with officers from other police units and the Border Guard, also arrested their accomplices who are suspected of other crimes. At the District Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw-Praga, the detained Ukrainian citizens heard charges, some were remanded in custody, and two were deported.
Recovery of Stolen Goods and Additional Crimes
Thanks to immediate cooperation with the Ukrainian National Police, investigators identified individuals involved in this brutal attack. Ukrainian police, based on their own information, recovered jewelry stolen in Poland at a Lviv pawn shop shortly after the robbery. Investigators also determined that some individuals involved in the robbery may have been involved in vehicle thefts in other EU countries with subsequent legalization in Poland.
Multi-Country Car Theft Ring
Through international cooperation with police from Germany, Czech Republic, and the Netherlands, it was established that the group committed several thefts of Mercedes and Mazda vehicles in Germany, Czech Republic, and the Netherlands. As a result of further actions, officers from Warsaw’s Department for Combating Terrorism and Murder and the Municipal Police Headquarters in Wrocław recovered stolen Mazda CX-5 vehicles from within the EU, including two just two days after their theft.
Arrests and Charges
Under the supervision of the District Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw-Praga, Warsaw police from the Department for Combating Terrorism and Murder, with support from officers from the Voivodeship Police Headquarters in Wrocław and Anti-Terrorist Units from Wrocław and Radom, as well as police from the Municipal Police Headquarters in Legnica and officers from the Border Guard Post in Korczowa, arrested seven Ukrainian citizens aged 25 to 48 in April 2024.
Legal Proceedings and Deportations
Four of the arrested individuals heard prosecutor’s charges, including committing robbery with a dangerous instrument combined with deprivation of liberty with particular cruelty, as well as charges of burglary and receiving stolen goods. Three men had their requests for temporary arrest granted for a three-month period. In April 2025, two Ukrainian citizens were deported from Polish territory. In May 2025, another suspect involved in the robbery was arrested in Zgorzelec, also suspected of committing vehicle thefts in other EU countries and a burglary in Rzeszów in July 2023.
Additional Crimes and Investigations
In November 2024, one of the suspects heard another charge related to an attempted robbery in 2021 near Tomaszów Lubelski. In the same month, another suspect was arrested at the Hrebenne border crossing after transporting stolen gold across the Polish-Ukrainian border. When arrested, the man had 400,000 euros that was not declared to Ukrainian authorities. It turned out that the previous year, this man had transported nearly two and a half million euros from Ukraine to Poland. He had previously been an officer of the Ukrainian Border Guard.
