Prosecutor dismissed for suspicious sources of income
The head of the appellate prosecutor's office in Katowice, Jerzy Hop, has
been dismissed by Justice Minister Barbara Piwnik, who "lost trust in him".
According to the latest edition of Newsweek, Hop, who earns some zl. 10,000
per month, has assets with an estimated value of zl. 700,000. Hop's
additional source of income is said to be connected to payments in exchange
for preferential treatment by the prosecutor's office. Hop claims his
additional financial gains come from his family and bank loans. However,
Minister Piwnik found his explanation unsatisfactory and demanded that he
send details by fax. When Hop told Radio Zet yesterday that such a request
had never taken place, the minister decided to dismiss him. Piwnik's
assistant Mirella Panek said that although the decision wasn't directly
connected with the accusations, the ministry is still waiting for a detailed
explanation. (Zycie, pp. 1, 4) M.K.
