In what was thought to be a gruesome football hooligan related murder in Krakow, when a man was hacked to death yesterday by a gang of men with machetes, could be connected to gangland rivalry, say police.
Detectives in Krakow detained five men last night in the wake of one of the most brutal murders in the southern Polish city in years.
A little after 10 o’clock yesterday morning, Ryszard C. (name withheld under Polish privacy laws), a well-known supporter of the Cracovia football team, was ambushed while driving his silver Audi through the outlying district of Kurdwanow.
According to witnesses, a number of masked men pursued the fleeing man, who attempted to hide in a rubbish tip. A frenzied attack ensued, with the victim hacked repeatedly with machetes.
It is thought that as many as 20 men were involved in the killing.
The local branch of the Gazeta Wyborcza daily reports that Ryszard C., who died while being taken to hospital in an ambulance, was barely recognizable when found.
Initially it was thought that the attack was related to ‘ultras’ who follow the Cracovia team, one of Poland’s oldest soccer teams, which has longstanding and intense rivalries with several clubs, chiefly Wisla, another Krakow-based team, and to a lesser degree Legia Warszawa from the capital.
Police now think, however, that the murder could be related to organized crime drug wars. (nh/pg)
source: PAP