Son accused of murdering father on Christmas Day in Złocieniec

Photo: Wiesław Miller (archive)

The District Prosecutor's Office in Drawsko Pomorskie has submitted an indictment to the District Court in Koszalin against 38-year-old Arkadiusz Ż. On Christmas Day 2023 in Złocieniec, he shot and killed his father, prosecutor Ryszard Gąsiorowski from the District Prosecutor's Office in Koszalin told PAP.

Arkadiusz Ż. will also face charges of violating the bodily integrity of his partner and her cousin, and illegal possession of ammunition. As reported by prosecutor Gąsiorowski, the accused had over 160 cartridges for various weapons without the required permit from April 2023 to December 26, 2023.

Prosecutor Gąsiorowski stipulated that if the court finds Arkadiusz Ż. guilty of murdering his father and violating the physical integrity of his partner and her cousin, he may apply extraordinary mitigation of punishment to the accused.

“According to the expert psychiatric opinion, supplemented during the preparatory proceedings, Arkadiusz Ż. committed the acts of murder and violation of bodily integrity while having a significantly limited ability to understand the significance of the acts and to control his conduct,” said prosecutor Gąsiorowski.

He added that diminished sanity is not a basis for discontinuing the investigation. Arkadiusz Ż. is still temporarily detained.

During the investigation, as reported by prosecutor Gąsiorowski, numerous expert opinions were collected, including in the field of genetics, ballistics and chemistry, as well as an opinion after the psychiatric observation of Arkadiusz Ż., which was subsequently supplemented.

The 38-year-old gave various explanations. He did not admit to the acts he was accused of, but later did not rule out his involvement.

"He said he reached into the cabinet for a gun because he was convinced that an unknown assailant was attacking him with gas, and he was acting in self-defense and in defense of his children," the prosecutor said.

Arkadiusz Ż. admitted during the investigation that he used a gun, fired shots, but did not aim at a person. They were supposed to be warning shots.

Arkadiusz Ż. allegedly shot his father on the night of December 25-26, 2023 in the yard of the family home at I Dywizji Wojska Polskiego Street in Złocieniec (West Pomeranian Voivodeship) after returning home from a Christmas party. Earlier, he was supposed to have pushed and chased his partner and her cousin out of the house.

According to investigators, Arkadiusz Ż. fired at least two shots at his father with a pistol for which he had a permit, as well as for two other weapons. The injured party, who died at the scene, was found to have one wound in the chest area and another in the abdominal cavity.

At the time of his arrest, Arkadiusz Ż. was under the influence of alcohol, and drug tests in his body gave a positive result. They showed the presence of marijuana.

On December 27, 2023, the man was brought to the prosecutor's office, where he heard the charges. He did not admit to committing the acts he was accused of and refused to provide explanations.

Murder is punishable by up to life imprisonment.