A Warsaw regional court spokeswoman said on Monday that it had turned down applications for both a European and a UK arrest warrant targeting Ziobro, Poland's former justice minister.
She said the rulings could not be appealed, and that prosecutors had failed to show he was in the EU, or planned to travel there, or to the UK.
Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek said he respected the court's decision but disagreed with its reasoning, which he said was based on Ziobro no longer being in the Schengen area.
He warned that the former minister "could be on a flight to Budapest or Brussels tomorrow," meaning Poland would no longer have an effective warrant against him once he was back.
Żurek said the ministry would consider reapplying once it received the court's written ruling, adding that the law "must be effective" in pursuing those who broke it.
Deputy Justice Minister Dariusz Mazur said Ziobro had fled abroad "fearing criminal liability," and that other legal tools remained available to bring him back to Poland.
Ziobro is a central figure in an investigation into Poland's Justice Fund under the previous Law and Justice (PiS) government, accused of leading an organised criminal group and misusing his office.
A court ordered his detention earlier this year, after which prosecutors sought a European arrest warrant.
Ziobro spent several months in Hungary, where he was granted international protection under the previous government of Viktor Orbán, before saying in May he was in the United States, using travel documents issued by Hungarian authorities.
Budapest revoked refugee status for Ziobro, his wife and former deputy justice minister Marcin Romanowski – also a suspect in the case – in early July, cancelling their travel documents as well.
(ał)
Source: PAP