Deputy head of PiS sentenced to jail

The district court in Warsaw has ruled that Mariusz Kamiński, former head of anti-corruption watchdog CBA, is guilty of abuse of his powers while running the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau. The court sentenced Kamiński to three years in prison, he has also been barred from holding any public office for ten years. The defense said that it has already lodged an appeal. Kamiński, who is also the deputy head of the largest opposition party Law and Justice (PiS), has been sentenced over abuse of powers during the so called “land scandal”. In 2007, the CBA carried out a provocation which involved paying bribes for the zoning change of the agricultural lands. The money was supposed to get delivered to then deputy prime minister Andrzej Lepper, who was later dismissed from the post. Jarosław Kaczyński, leader of the Law and Justice party, said that “it is clear that Kamiński should be acquitted”. He also added that the ruling is a political step to “to protect the Polish elite from prosecution”.