The Polish prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation into the destruction of state flags on the site of the Westerplatte and 1939 War Museum, according to a statement made by the Regional Public Prosecutor’s Office in Gdańsk. The incident took place on the night of 1 to 2 April. Westerplatte was historically one of the sites which witnessed the first shots in the World War 2. A Polish ammunition storage defended itself by numerous German attacks for almost a week with great disadvantage in equipment and the number of soldiers.
The Gdańsk-Śródmieście District Prosecutor’s Office opened an investigation into public insulting and destroying the national flags of the Republic of Poland, damaging 11 flagpoles and also theft and burglary of catering trailers, and attempted theft and burglary of another catering trailer.
„The investigation was initiated based on the materials from the activities carried out by the Police Station II in Gdańsk. At the current stage of the proceedings, witnesses have been interviewed, CCTV footage has been secured from the museum, and the scene of the incident has been visually inspected, securing traces for further forensic examination,” said spokesman prosecutor Mariusz Duszyński.
According to the prosecutor, the findings so far show that all unlawful acts under investigation were committed by the same perpetrator.
„The man entered the area of Westerplatte on Tuesday at around 10.50 pm, then proceeded towards the monument, where he pulled down flags from 11 masts while damaging them. Among the flags pulled down were 10 state flags of the Republic of Poland and 1 flag of the European Union,” Duszczyński informed.
After taking down the flags, the man proceeded to the ruins area of the shelter where he burned 5 of them, including 4 Polish flags and a one European Union flag. He then headed towards the food trailers, committing burglary to two of them and attempting to break into the third. The remains of the burned flags were found the following day by tourists and handed over to the site security.
According to investigators, the suspect caused material losses of approximately PLN 7,500 (around £1,500)to the Museum of the Second World War. The owners of the catering trailers estimated the losses at over PLN 4 thousand.
In Poland, an act of burglary is punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Destruction of property carries up to five years imprisonment, while destruction of a state flag can be punished with one year imprisonment.
The Westerplatte is one of the most important World War 2 memorials in Poland. An ammunition depot located there was the only military site in Gdańsk that was in undisturbed Polish control after regaining independence in 1918. As for the Germans, it was seen as a symbol of humiliation. It also was one of the first places to be attacked on 1 September 1939, and therefore, it is considered one of the sites of the very beginning of the World War 2.
The desperate defence of Westerplatte Depot led by Mjr Henryk Sucharski and Cpt .Franciszek Dąbrowski lasted until 7 September, inflicting heavy losses on the German aggressors.
On 7 September, the commander of Westerplatte decided to initiate capitulation talks with the Germans, following the opinion of the unit’s doctor and the rising risk of losing the lives of many wounded soldiers.
Source: PAP
Photo: @remizacompl
Tomasz Modrzejewski
