The former head of Poland’s Internal Security Agency (ABW) was detained by police on Monday morning after repeatedly failing to appear before a parliamentary commission investigating the abuse of the controversial Israeli spyware known as ‘Pegasus.’
Piotr Pogonowski had refused to give his testimony to the commission, pointing to a ruling by Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal in September that deemed the commission’s work “unconstitutional.”
But his detention on Monday and subsequent testimony before the commission, marked the first time since the current government came to power last year, that the police had been involved with a person linked to the previous government, led by the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party.
The commission was established to investigate the apparent misuse of the Israeli spyware Pegasus, which is capable of hacking into phones, collecting data and eavesdropping on conversations.
The Law and Justice government allegedly used the software to spy on as many as 578 people, according to Poland’s current prosecutor general and justice minister Adam Bodnar.
Many of those surveilled were politicians and opposition members critical of the Law and Justice government.
In the most high-profile case, the software was apparently used to spy on Krzysztof Brejza ahead of the 2019 European Parliament and Polish parliamentary elections. Brejza at that time served as the head of the electoral staff of the Civic Coalition, the leader of the then biggest opposition bloc, who is now the main party in the ruling coalition.
Holding the former government and officials that served under it to account for apparent abuses of power was one of Civic Coalition’s pledges during last year’s parliamentary election campaign.
The work of the commission, which has already questioned the Law and Justice leader Jarosław Kaczyński, is part of the current center-right government's broader efforts to deliver on that campaign promise.
But his detention on Monday and subsequent testimony before the commission, marked the first time since the current government came to power last year, that the police had been involved with a person linked to the previous government, led by the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party.
The commission was established to investigate the apparent misuse of the Israeli spyware Pegasus, which is capable of hacking into phones, collecting data and eavesdropping on conversations.
The Law and Justice government allegedly used the software to spy on as many as 578 people, according to Poland’s current prosecutor general and justice minister Adam Bodnar.
Many of those surveilled were politicians and opposition members critical of the Law and Justice government.
In the most high-profile case, the software was apparently used to spy on Krzysztof Brejza ahead of the 2019 European Parliament and Polish parliamentary elections. Brejza at that time served as the head of the electoral staff of the Civic Coalition, the leader of the then biggest opposition bloc, who is now the main party in the ruling coalition.
Holding the former government and officials that served under it to account for apparent abuses of power was one of Civic Coalition’s pledges during last year’s parliamentary election campaign.
The work of the commission, which has already questioned the Law and Justice leader Jarosław Kaczyński, is part of the current center-right government's broader efforts to deliver on that campaign promise.
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