Two men attacked a Ukrainian couple on a tram in Poznań, Poland, "because they were speaking their native language to each other." City councilor Andrzej Prędke reported the incident, witnessed it, and posted a video online. Police detained both attackers, TVN24 reports, according to UNN.
Details
Poznań city councilor Andrzej Prędke on Thursday described on his Facebook page an incident on Poznań tram No. 13, where two aggressive men allegedly attacked a Ukrainian couple for speaking Ukrainian to each other. He also posted a video of the incident.
"It all started with vulgar insults, the command 'leave our women alone,' and then, immediately after the second recording, they threw him to the ground, kicked him, and a ricochet hit his partner, who was trying to protect him," the councilor described.
He noted that passengers instantly reacted to the actions of the two men. First, they verbally reprimanded them, and then tried to pull them away from the Ukrainian man when they attacked him.
"You should be on our side, we are doing this for you," the men said, threatening other passengers with an attack.
The recording shows the men surrounding the Ukrainian couple and then chasing them through the tram. "You're an asshole," one of the aggressors shouts at the man.
"When the injured couple got off the tram, I went with them, offering to help call the police and gather additional witnesses to the incident. Unfortunately, the couple decided not to. However, I left them my number in case they changed their minds," Andrzej Prędke wrote. "I am publishing the video as a warning, to archive the footage, and perhaps someone will recognize these men. Unfortunately, such things still happen, and it's terrible - we must be aware of it. Zero tolerance for these two idiots," he concluded.
Police officially launched an investigation into the case.
According to the spokesman for the Provincial Police Headquarters in Poznań, Junior Inspector Andrzej Borowiak, the police detained the two perpetrators of the incident. Both are 27 years old. One of them is from Poznań, the other from its suburbs. Borowiak announced that both would be charged with a discrimination crime.
The spokesman for the Poznań police stated that as of Thursday, no reports regarding this case had been received. The victims did not report the incident to the police, and officers learned about it "only from the internet."
"Given the nature of this case, and especially the low motives of the perpetrators, we decided to investigate this case on our own initiative. We coordinated our actions in this case with the prosecutor's office," Borowiak said.
"Based on video recordings published online, surveillance camera footage, and operational findings, police identified the suspects. This afternoon, two of them were detained. They are currently in custody at the police station. We are preparing evidence to charge both men under Article 119 of the Criminal Code," he noted.
Anyone who uses violence or unlawfully threatens a group of people or an individual because of their national, ethnic, racial, political, religious affiliation, or lack of religious beliefs, is punishable in Poland by imprisonment for a term of 3 months to 5 years.