The District Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw has obtained consent from the European Parliament to initiate legal proceedings against the far-right Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Grzegorz Braun. The prosecutor’s office plans to bring forward seven charges against him and will soon establish a date for his arraignment.
The European Parliament lifted Braun’s immunity on Tuesday, 6 May, following a motion submitted by Prosecutor General Adam Bodnar last October. The charges against Braun include two related to violations of bodily integrity and the insult of a physician, specifically the director of the National Cardiology Centre.
Additionally, three charges pertain to various acts of hooliganism, while the remaining two charges involve Braun’s inappropriate conduct within the Polish Sejm, including the public insult of an object of religious worship and the violation of bodily integrity of another individual during an intervention.
Two of the charges are connected to incidents in December 2023, when Braun extinguished Hanukkah candles using a fire extinguisher during a ceremonial event at the Sejm. Other allegations include obstructing a lecture on the Holocaust at the German Historical Institute, which has resulted in charges related to property damage, including harm to electronic equipment, as well as the failure to vacate the premises despite requests from the Institute’s administration. Furthermore, Braun allegedly removed a Christmas tree from a Krakow court and disposed of it improperly.
Moreover, two charges concern an occurrence at the National Institute of Cardiology—State Research Institute. Braun, accompanied by a group of individuals not wearing masks, unlawfully entered the hospital in 2022 amidst the pandemic. They disrupted a management meeting and assaulted its director.
Braun, expelled from the Confederation in January 2025, is currently barred from participation in the European Parliament due to remarks made during a gender debate and for his disruption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
The prosecutor’s office is also investigating additional cases involving Braun, including an incident in OleÅ›nica where he allegedly deprived a physician of her liberty. On 16 April, Braun reportedly entered the hospital and attempted to prevent gynaecologist Gizela Jagielska from performing an abortion on a patient who was in a serious mental state. He claimed to be executing a “citizen’s arrest,” which resulted in the attending physician being unable to assist her patients. The District Prosecutor’s Office in OleÅ›nica conducts the ongoing investigation in this matter.
Furthermore, the prosecutor’s office is examining accusations of anti-Semitism and incitement to hatred linked to Braun’s comments during a presidential debate organised by the daily publication “Super Express” on 28 April. In addition, both the police and the prosecutor’s office are conducting an investigation related to Braun’s election meeting on 30 April in BiaÅ‚a Podlaska, during which he removed a Ukrainian flag, displayed in solidarity with Ukraine, as the country faces Russian invasion.
