A twist in the Zagłębie vampire case? He was supposed to have killed a dozen women

The case involves the convicted man's children, who, after years of silence, decided to fight for their father's good name and their own right to dignity.

Stigmatization of “vampire” children

When Zdzisław Marchwicki was sentenced to death in 1975 for 14 murders of women, six attempted murders, and other crimes, his children were still teenagers. Their father's sentence changed their lives forever — to this day, they bear the stigma of "children of the vampire." Now they are trying to clear their father's name.

– They want to restore their father's good name and clear their name, because in the eyes of society they were and still are "children of a vampire". Now this stigmatization is being passed on to their children – says attorney Klaudia Mokrzewska-Kowalczyk in an interview with "Gazeta Wyborcza". – For all these years they lived in social ostracism. They were pointed at or had problems finding work, so they are driven by a strong need to prove their father's innocence.

The Journalist's Trail and the Lost Evidence

The lawyers’ actions were inspired by Przemysław Semczuk – a journalist and author of the book “The Vampire from Zagłębie”. He was one of the few who analyzed the documentation of the Marchwicki case with such insight and found numerous irregularities.

- Let this be clear. I have known them for many years and there has never been any talk of compensation during the talks - Semczuk emphasizes in the pages of "Gazeta Wyborcza". - Besides, money as compensation? That is absurd. We are not talking about 25 years of unjust imprisonment for Tomasz Komenda, but about hanging a man. This wrong cannot be repaired. But justice can be restored.

Semczuk points out, among other things, that the watch belonging to the murdered Jolanta Gierek, Edward Gierek's niece, was... "reconstructed" by the militia because the original was lost. Witnesses at the trial recognized it as authentic evidence, although it was only a fake.

Evidence “Same” but not “the same”

The list of questionable evidence in the case is long and frightening.

– The court violated the basic principle that questionable evidence is decided in favor of the accused. Meanwhile, the feather that was considered evidence was "the same", not "the same". The coat "was similar", but it was not the victim's coat – enumerates Semczuk.

Among the most absurd elements of the files was also a purse found in a garbage can by a disabled boy. – A purse found in a garbage can by a mentally disabled boy is a bizarre piece of evidence. It has not been proven that it belonged to the victim. Half of the Polish People's Republic had the same purses at that time.

But it was assumed that since it was found on the road that Marchwicki used to go to work, he must have thrown it there, incidentally several years after the woman's murder - says the journalist. - I always emphasize one more thing: Apart from the forced and manipulated confession of guilt, there was not a single hard evidence. Not a single fingerprint of Zdzisław was found on the body!

Contrary to the FBI expert

The Marchwicki case attracted attention even overseas. In 1971, an American profiler, James Brussel from the FBI, came to Poland. He was accompanied by Colonel Józef Muniak from the Main Headquarters. Brussel, based on the documentation, drew up a profile of the perpetrator.

– Colonel Muniak's note has survived – Semczuk relates. – Brussel decided that the vampire had a secondary education, did not come into conflict with the law, did not drink alcohol, was systematic and pedantic. He was the complete opposite of Zdzisław.

Police intrigue and the silence of the archives

According to Semczuk, Marchwicki was indicated by his own wife – counting on a million złoty reward. In the meantime, the woman found a new partner, and according to witnesses, she physically and mentally abused the children – both those from the previous and the new relationship.

– Their mother forced them to give testimony that incriminated their father – say Marchwicki’s adult children today.

When the journalist tried to gain access to the files stored in the archives of the Provincial Police Headquarters in Katowice, he was refused. They claimed that the documents did not exist. Today, we know that this is not true.

– The archives of the Provincial Police Headquarters contain nearly... three hundred volumes of files concerning Marchwicki – reveals Klaudia Mokrzewska-Kowalczyk.

The problem is that all of them are still secret and not available to the public. It is possible that among them there is key evidence of innocence.

What's next?

The motion to reopen the proceedings is to be submitted to the Supreme Court in July. It will be based on materials previously unknown to the public and the court, which, according to the attorneys, may undermine the validity of the verdict.

- Expert opinions from various specialists indicate that evidence was manipulated. We have new evidence that Zdzisław Marchwicki was not the perpetrator of these murders. However, before filing an application to the Supreme Court, we do not want to reveal it - explains Mokrzewska-Kowalczyk.

Although Zdzisław Marchwicki has been dead for almost half a century, perhaps his children and grandchildren will live to see a symbolic acquittal. And the Polish justice system will have to face one of the darkest pages of its history.

Read also: Edward Kozak is dead. He was the one who interviewed the "Vampire from Bytom"

Read also: The Zagłębie vampire murdered women for years. When Gierek's niece died, the case gained momentum