Polish police identify 12-year-old after freight trains strike concrete on tracks

Collision on the Dęblin-Łuków route

On the evening of 22 September 2026, two freight trains traveling in opposite directions struck concrete obstacles placed across tracks near the village of Jedlanka, located in the Stoczek Łukowski municipality within Lublin Voivodeship. A duty officer at the Łuków County Police Headquarters received the emergency notification at 18:45. One freight train, consisting of 24 wagons carrying containers, was traveling along the route from Konin to Biała Podlaska. The second train, composed of 22 wagons prepared for container loading, was traveling in the opposite direction from Małaszewicze to Kutno. Both locomotives sustained mechanical damage to their front cowcatchers and track clearers upon hitting the debris. Neither freight train derailed, and neither driver sustained physical injuries. Railway traffic on the line between Dęblin and Łuków remained suspended for several hours while emergency personnel inspected the tracks and removed the debris.

Konin to Biała Podlaska24

Małaszewicze to Kutno22

Konin to Biała Podlaska

24 wagons

Małaszewicze to Kutno

22 wagons

Data from the article text

Boy admits to pushing platform debris

Criminal investigators from the Łuków County Police identified a 12-year-old boy residing in Łuków County as the individual responsible for placing the objects. Questioned by police officers in the presence of his mother, the child admitted to pushing the concrete components down the embankment. The items were identified as remnants from a dismantled platform at a nearby closed railway station. According to investigators, the youth kicked the reinforced slabs from the embankment edge onto active tracks number 1 and number 2, where trains were scheduled to pass. In addition to dislodging the large concrete pieces, the 12-year-old placed several stones directly onto the rails before leaving the location.

“As police officers established, the boy, while walking near the railway tracks, pushed concrete fragments of the old platform structure down from the embankment with his feet. The falling elements landed on the tracks. Additionally, the 12-year-old placed several stones on the tracks.”

Sabotage inquiry and agency response

The nature and weight of the obstacles led regional authorities to mobilize multiple security agencies to the site. The Lublin regional prosecutor's office reported that four heavy L-shaped blocks made of reinforced concrete were placed across the rails on both tracks. Police counter-terrorist officers from Lublin, the Internal Security Agency (ABW), the Central Bureau of Police Investigation (CBŚP), and the State Commission for Railway Accident Investigation joined the case to determine whether the act constituted deliberate sabotage. Investigators noted that four such reinforced blocks are difficult for a single individual to carry, leading detectives to examine whether the boy acted alone, followed external instructions, or received outside inspiration. Officials stated that current findings show no indications of inspiration from the East, though inquiries into the precise motives continue.

Legal proceedings in family court

Following the interrogation, the Łuków police assembled the case materials for transmission to the judicial system. Under Polish law, individuals who commit unlawful acts before turning 13 years of age are subject to specialized juvenile procedures rather than standard penal prosecution. The compiled investigative files will be reviewed by the Family and Juvenile Court in Łuków. The presiding judge will evaluate whether the boy's actions constitute a manifestation of demoralization and whether court-ordered educational measures should be applied to the youth.