Poland formally requested the US authorities on the 27th of July to arrest and extradite former Polish Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro, Politico reports.
Poland plans to put Ziobro, a politician from the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, on trial for abuse of office, diverting state funds to political allies and spying on opponents.
The pro-European government of Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has pledged to hold PiS accountable for corruption during the party’s rule from 2015 to 2023. Ziobro is a controversial political figure who has pushed through significant reforms to the justice system that have given the government broad influence over judges and prosecutors, sparking a row with Brussels.
The Polish State Prosecutor’s Office said the arrest and extradition request was submitted through diplomatic channels by Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek. The extradition request lists 19 of the 26 charges the prosecution wants to bring against Zjobro. These include running an organized crime group within the Justice Ministry, abuse of office, rigging funding competitions to benefit pro-government organizations, and using Pegasus spyware against political opponents.
Former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, a political ally of the PiS government, granted Zjobro political asylum in Hungary, but after Péter Magyar, who had vowed to extradite Zjobro, won the election,
the Pole left Hungary and went to the United States in May.
There, he was hired as a political commentator by the PiS-friendly broadcaster TV Republika. Ziobro said at the time that freedom is what the United States is, and freedom is what is really worth fighting for.
Ziobro has called the accusations against him fabricated and said that Tusk is waging a political vendetta against him. Ziobro has also promised to take legal action against Tusk and his government ministers if PiS manages to regain power in 2027.
However, the political landscape has become more complicated after almost 40 MPs led by former Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki broke away from PiS last week. However, polls still show that the Tusk-led coalition may not have enough support to secure a majority in the next parliament.
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