Stanisław Wawrzecki (1922 – March 19, 1965) was a Director of State-Directed Meat Trade in

Praga Praga is a district of Warsaw, Poland. It is on the east bank of the river Vistula. First mentioned in 1432, until 1791 it formed a separate town with its own city charter. History The historical Praga was a small settlement located at ...

(part of

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

), and the last person sentenced to death and executed in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

for economy-related crimes after 1956. He was convicted for

corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

. He admitted to receiving over three and half of million Złoty. This crime risked a maximum of 5 years in prison, but the court - under conditional clause - sentenced him to death without the right to appeal.

Council of State A Council of State is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head o ...

refused his request for commutation and, finally, he was

hanged Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging in ...

. He remains the last person executed in Poland for a non-military crime other than

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

, and will remain so given Poland's abolition of the death penalty. His trial was influenced by strong pressure from the communist authorities, especially from then PUWP First Secretary,

Władysław Gomułka Władysław Gomułka (; 6 February 1905 – 1 September 1982) was a Polish communist politician. He was the ''de facto'' leader of post-war Poland from 1947 until 1948. Following the Polish October he became leader again from 1956 to 1970. Go ...

. In 2002 the Polish Supreme Court turned down the death sentence ''post factum'', arguing that this was a clear miscarriage of justice. Nevertheless, the Court did not rehabilitate him because it was the nature of the sentence which was disputed, rather than his guilt. Wawrzecki's son, Paweł Wawrzecki, is a well-known Polish

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

References

See also