In brief

• Warsaw prosecutors have sent an indictment against MEP Grzegorz Braun to court.
• The case covers four offences, including theft of Ukrainian and EU flags and destruction of an LGBT exhibition in the Sejm.
• Five other people, including MP Roman Fritz, are also charged in connection with the case.

Charges against an MEP

The Warsaw District Prosecutor's Office has referred an indictment against Grzegorz Braun to court, according to a statement from the Ministry of Justice and reporting by TVN24 (Prokuratura skierowała akt oskarżenia przeciwko Grzegorzowi Braunowi – Rzeczpospolita) (Flagi, wystawa LGBT i „żydowski żonkil”. Braun z kolejnym aktem oskarżenia – Bankier.pl). The case covers four alleged offences. (Ruch prokuratury w sprawie Grzegorza Brauna. Jest akt oskarżenia – Onet) (Jest akt oskarżenia przeciwko Grzegorzowi Braunowi – RMF24)

The charges include the theft of a Ukrainian flag from the town hall in Biała Podlaska, the theft of an EU flag from a building of the former Ministry of Industry in Katowice, and the destruction of an LGBT exhibition in the Sejm, the lower house of parliament. Braun is also accused of defaming the organisers of the "Żonkile" campaign, including the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews, during a presidential debate organised by Super Express (Prokuratura podjęła kroki ws. Grzegorza Brauna – Wirtualna Polska).

Other defendants

Five other people are named in the indictment. Two are accused of acting as co-perpetrators in the flag thefts. One of them is Roman Fritz, a Konfederacja Korony Polskiej MP (Grzegorz Braun oskarżony. Jest ruch prokuratury – Dziennik.pl). Three more are accused of aiding the theft in Biała Podlaska, having brought and held a ladder used to reach the flag.

Minister's position

Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek said on social media that Braun "will stand before a court" and that the law applies to everyone, regardless of parliamentary or European Parliament mandate. Reports also say Braun tried to hand the Ukrainian flag to staff of the Ukrainian embassy after taking it.

What happens next

The indictment now goes to a court, which will decide whether the case proceeds to trial. The sources do not specify a hearing date.