Police announced on Friday that Sergeant Natan Sieron had died. The 29-year-old officer belonged to the police headquarters in Boleslawiec and was serving in Krasnik when a 33-year-old man shot him with an illegal firearm on Thursday. The report gives no further details about the suspect or the criminal proceedings.
Marcin Mozdzonek, an Olsztyn councillor affiliated with the Confederation party, head of the Polish Hunting Council and former captain of Poland’s national volleyball team, first offered condolences to Sieron’s family, friends and colleagues. He then said serious staffing shortages in the police force were among the factors behind the tragedy.
Mozdzonek argued that Sieron had been sent on a dangerous operation after only two years of service, when he should, in the councillor’s view, still have been in preparatory service. He listed too few training sessions and a format he said failed to prepare officers for real duties, inadequate state support for officers who use firearms lawfully, and an “asymmetry of threat” that he said gives offenders a psychological and tactical advantage.
Mozdzonek called improvements to policing a matter of public interest. His comments prompted a response from the police, which rejected a direct link between Sieron’s death and staffing levels.
Deputy Inspector Andrzej Fijolek, spokesman for the national police chief, said Poland’s force has nearly 104,000 officers—the highest number in its history—and vacancies account for about 6%. He said there was no basis for presenting the sergeant’s death as a consequence of staffing conditions.
Fijolek stressed that Sieron was on duty and wearing a vest marked “police,” but the attacker still fired at him. The assailant’s actions caused the officer’s death, the statement said; neither Sieron’s two years of service, vacancy numbers nor claims about training have been established as causes.
The spokesman said debate about improving the police is necessary, but urged people not to turn the officer’s death into political campaigning. He called for respect for Sieron and care in public statements while the circumstances are being established.