Four academics in Poland arrested for fraud

police A professor at the Institute of Maths and Computer Science at the Wroclaw University of Technology, has been arrested for fraud. According to the public prosecutor’s office in Legnica, south west Poland, the sum of money involved could be as high as 1.8 million zloty (429,300 euro).

Professor Adam J (full name withheld due to Polish law) and three colleagues received money from the university and the Ministry of Science and Higher Education for research in the field of computer science. The claim is that this research was not conducted and that they simply pocketed the money.

Link
Four academics arrested for fraud (thenews.pl)

4 thoughts on “Four academics in Poland arrested for fraud”

  1. Right that things like this should be investigated – but phrases like this “All four suspects are being provisionally held for three months” is very chilling. Proving you have carried out research in such an ephemeral and non-concrete area of academia is gonna be very tough

    Very worrying – academics being arrested always makes one think of the bad old days of the suppression of non-party ideas.

    1. Proving you have carried out research in such an ephemeral and non-concrete area of academia is gonna be very tough

      That was my thought also. I assume it must be quite clear that they made no attempt at the research, as failing to find anything interesting or showing that the initial idea is flawed is not the same as not doing the research.

      I will try to keep an eye on any developments.

    2. Keep in mind that in several European countries they are allowed to arrest and hold you while they investigate the alleged crime, unlike in the US where they can’t arrest you without charging you with a specific crime.

      It’s just different laws. For example, in the Czech republic, you can be detained and held for 48 hours before they even charge you with a crime. The Polish system includes a system that is known as temporary arrest – this can be invoked under certain circumstances, for a maximum period of 90 days in most cases – this is carried out under an order from the court, not at the behest of the police, and requires that certain conditions be met.

      See https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/142264/Poland_Prison_Pack.pdf pages 12 – 14.

      1. So, just out of general interest it is similar in the UK, but the time scales are a little shorter;

        The police can hold you for up to 24 hours before they have to charge you with a crime or release you.

        They can apply to hold you for up to 36 or 96 hours if you’re suspected of a serious crime, eg murder.

        If you’re arrested under the Terrorism Act, you can be held without charge for up to 14 days.

        https://www.gov.uk/arrested-your-rights/how-long-you-can-be-held-in-custody

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