Warsaw police review dozens of elderly deaths linked to plumber accused of six murders

Circumstances of the arrest

Polish law enforcement detained 43-year-old plumber Michał P. on 23 February 2025 in the Kabaty neighborhood of Warsaw's Ursynów district. His capture occurred immediately after a fatal assault on a 73-year-old woman residing in an apartment on Wąwozowa Street. The victim had dialed her bank late in the evening to alter the PIN code on her payment card but failed to disconnect the line after completing the procedure. A bank employee remained on the active connection, overheard the sounds of the woman being suffocated, and immediately alerted emergency dispatchers. Officers arriving at the building discovered Michał P. attempting to evade capture on a balcony directly below the victim's apartment. Chemical screenings conducted following the arrest confirmed the suspect was under the influence of narcotics at the time of the detention.

Modus operandi and charges

The Warsaw District Prosecutor's Office filed charges against Michał P. for the murder of six elderly women across the Śródmieście, Ochota, and Ursynów districts, alongside a robbery charge involving a seventh elderly woman who died during the attack. The documented homicides include the killing of two sisters in a residence on Grzybowska Street. Prosecutors determined the suspect leveraged his legitimate plumbing business to identify solitary senior women and observe valuable items stored inside their properties. Clients routinely shared his contact details through personal recommendations, allowing him to establish friendly relations before returning under mundane pretexts. After securing entry, the attackers restrained the victims, forced them to reveal hiding spots for cash and jewelry, and killed them through violent suffocation using pillows or plastic bags before locking the apartments.

Accomplices and expanded inquiry

Authorities also arrested two Ukrainian nationals who remain in pre-trial detention alongside Michał P. for their participation in the attacks. Prosecutors charged Ihor H. with involvement in three homicides, including the Grzybowska Street double murder, while Taras H. faces charges for complicity in one murder and one robbery where the victim died. Investigators determined Michał P. acted alone in the homicides on Franciszkańska and Wąwozowa streets. A fourth suspect, identified as Jarosław O., faces criminal charges for fencing stolen property taken from the residences. Investigators stated that Michał P. committed the robberies to fund narcotics purchases and gambling on slot machines. An officer from the specialized homicide unit described how the suspect's declining caution enabled his arrest.

If disinhibition had not set in, he could have continued killing for a long time, but he lost his vigilance.

Examination of prior death records

A dedicated task force of detectives is now examining dozens of deceased solitary seniors in Warsaw whose fatalities were previously certified as natural deaths. The wide-ranging review began after digital forensic examiners extracted approximately 75,000 images from Michał P.'s mobile phone showing stolen jewelry, silverware, paintings, and vinyl records that do not match known cases. Investigators are also reviewing scene reports for overlooked indicators, such as windows left open during winter months, which perpetrators used to delay the scent of bodily decomposition. Initial crime scene investigations often avoided autopsies when seniors died in armchairs or beds without obvious signs of struggle. Prosecutors confirmed that no formal indictment has been drafted yet because the identification of potential further victims remains in progress.