WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland’s top police officer told a broadcaster that a grenade launcher given to him by Ukrainian officials accidentally exploded in his office this week while moving it.
General Jarosław Szymczyk made his first comment after the unusual incident RMF FM radio station in Poland was reported on Saturday.
The explosion occurred at the National Police headquarters in Warsaw on Wednesday morning. As media reporters speculated about the incident, the Interior Ministry said in a statement on Thursday that a gift from Ukraine exploded, slightly injuring Simchik and another person.
But the statement left many unanswered questions about what is now and who sparked the explosion.
Szymczyk confirmed reports in Polish media that the gift was a grenade launcher.
RMF FM quoted police officials as saying that Szymczyk received two used anti-tank grenade launchers as a gift during a recent visit to Ukraine. There were no other details, but reports suggest that neither the Ukrainians nor the Poles believed the launcher had any explosive potential. One has been turned into a speaker.
“When I was moving the used grenade launcher that the Ukrainians had given away, there was an explosion,” Szymczyk told the broadcaster. He said the blast was so powerful its impact pierced the floor and ceiling.
Szymczyk was initially hospitalized for observation, while the other, a clerical employee, did not require hospitalization.
Poland, an ally of Ukraine, has provided its neighbor with a variety of support, including military and humanitarian aid, since Russia’s all-out invasion on Feb. 24. Poland also hosts a large number of Ukrainian refugees.
