In 2017, before a soccer match between Denmark and Poland in Copenhagen, Danish police clashed with Polish fans who were denied entry to the game, according to Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita.
Among those arrested was Grzegorz Horodko, nicknamed “Śledziu,” a Gdańsk-based skinhead with a history of violent crimes and connections to an international neo-Nazi group called Blood & Honour, Rzeczpospolita reported on Tuesday.
Danish media released footage showing Horodko attacking police officers first, it said. He was sentenced to 60 days in jail and banned from entering Denmark for six years.
According to Rzeczpospolita, Karol Nawrocki, then director of the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk and now a presidential candidate, personally vouched for Horodko.
Nawrocki’s spokesperson confirmed this, though he denies close personal ties with Horodko.
Other Polish officials also intervened on Horodko’s behalf at the time, including a former member of parliament and the foreign minister, Rzeczpospolita said.
Still, Nawrocki’s involvement raises questions about his connections to extremist groups and controversial football fan circles in Gdańsk, critics say.
Investigative journalist Tomasz Piątek has claimed that Horodko maintains a profile on a Russian social media platform where he has shared, among other content, a photo featuring a swastika.
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Source: IAR/PAP/Rzeczpospolita/X/@Tomasz5ek