Fugitive Ex-Polish Deputy Justice Minister Romanowski Reportedly Flees to Transnistria

Polish authorities have announced that Marcin Romanowski, the former deputy minister of justice who is a fugitive in a corruption investigation, is currently located in Tiraspol, in the separatist region of Transnistria. According to a spokesperson for the Warsaw Prosecutor's Office, cited by the PAP agency, Romanowski communicated his whereabouts to the court via a letter, stating his residence in Tiraspol.

In the handwritten document, the former official expressed his willingness to appear before Polish courts or prosecutors, provided he is not taken into custody. A European arrest warrant has been issued for Romanowski, who faces multiple charges, including corruption. The former official denies all accusations leveled against him.

Romanowski, 50, served as deputy minister of justice between 2019 and 2023 under the national-conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party government. Investigators allege that during his tenure, Romanowski directed millions of euros from a fund intended to support victims of crime towards projects that the former justice minister, Zbigniew Ziobro, claimed would bring political benefits to the party. The former official refutes these allegations.

According to Polish media reports, Marcin Romanowski and former minister Zbigniew Ziobro initially fled to Hungary, where they were granted asylum by the government led at the time by Viktor Orbán. After a change in government in Budapest and the announcement by the new Prime Minister, Peter Magyar, that Hungary would no longer protect them, Ziobro reportedly left the country and sought refuge in the United States. Transnistria is an internationally unrecognized separatist region of Moldova, considered to be within Russia's sphere of influence.

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disponibilitatea de a se prezenta în fața unei instanțe sau a procurorilor polonezi, cu condiția să nu fie plasat în detenție