Poland drops criminal probe into Dutch F-35 missile strike on Wyryki house

Investigation closed without charges

On 10 September 2026, the District Prosecutor's Office in Lublin announced the discontinuation of its investigation into the missile strike that hit a residential house in Wyryki-Wola. The incident occurred exactly one year earlier, during a nighttime military operation to intercept incoming unmanned aerial vehicles. Prosecutors concluded that the actions of commanders and pilots did not constitute a crime under Article 17, Paragraph 1, Point 2 of the Polish Code of Criminal Procedure. Investigators established that military personnel operated within their statutory duties and official authorizations. Spokesman Marcin Kozak confirmed that the case was formally closed without charges against any service members.

The drone intrusion and interception

The interception took place overnight between 9 and 10 September 2025, when three unmanned aerial vehicles violated Polish airspace from Belarus in the Wyryki region. Polish F-16 and Dutch F-35 fighter jets were scrambled to secure the airspace, firing a total of three air-to-air missiles. The Operational Commander of the Armed Forces, General Maciej Klisz, issued the order to neutralize the targets due to an immediate threat to state security. During the engagement, an AIM-9X Sidewinder Block II missile launched from a Dutch F-35 missed its target and struck the roof of a residential property. Prosecutor Marcin Kozak explained the operational context of the engagement.

“Different pairs of fighters operated in that area that night. We determined that the roof of the building was hit by an AIM-9X Sidewinder Block II missile fired by the pilot of an F-35 fighter, a Dutch pilot. It was an unintentional act; the order was issued by the operational commander of the Armed Forces. It complied with procedures. The shot was fired as part of tactical procedures aimed at protecting human population centres from incoming drones.”

Forensic findings and legal justification

A ballistics analysis by the Forensic Laboratory of the Military Gendarmerie established that the structural destruction resulted from the detonation of the missile's explosive warhead upon impact. Both F-16 and F-35 aircraft carry similar munitions, specifically AIM-120 AMRAAM C7 and AIM-9X variants, which initially complicated the identification of the firing platform. Command logs and testimony from the Air Defence Duty Commander corroborated that the Dutch pilot operated strictly under orders from the operational commander. Prosecutors determined that while the event fulfilled the formal criteria of creating a public hazard, the statutory duty defense excluded criminal unlawfulness. The prosecutor's office described the legal framework governing the command decision.

“The order to neutralise the objects was taken in accordance with procedures and the principle of the primacy of protecting human life. The resulting material damage in Wyryki-Wola was an unavoidable collateral consequence of a dynamic response to a direct threat to state security.”

Property damage and reconstruction

The missile blast destroyed the roof and walls of the residential home belonging to Alicja and Tomasz Wesołowski, while damaging an outbuilding, adjacent structures belonging to three families, and two private passenger cars. No residents or military personnel sustained physical injuries in the explosion. Following structural evaluations, the damaged house was completely dismantled in March 2026. The Ministry of National Defence took responsibility for the accident, supervising and financing the full reconstruction of the property. The Wesołowski family is scheduled to return to their newly rebuilt home before the end of 2026.