— Police and paramedics were refused entry to the premises upon their arrival
By Ed Wight
A priest who is alleged to have organised a gay orgy in which a man was hospitalised after overdosing on erectile dysfunction pills has been arrested and could face up to eight years in jail.
Father Tomasz Zmarzły from the church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Angels in Poland was charged with sex and drug crimes as well as failure to help someone at medical risk following a police investigation into the incident.
The disgraced clergyman had allegedly thrown a small party with a male prostitute and his friend at his apartment in the city of Dąbrowa Górnicza in September last year.
But when police and paramedics were refused entry after being called when one of the men collapsed, prosecutors launched an investigation into the priest for failing to help the unconscious man.
Leaked telephone recordings suggested that the victim may have been plied with the date rape drug known as GHB.
According to Fakt newspaper which received the recording, a man believed to be the male prostitute is heard talking frantically to the emergency services.
In the call, the paper said he is heard sobbing: ‘He was so high… And they told me that he shouldn’t be touched! I tell them, check, I lifted his head and he was foaming at the mouth…’
He is then allegedly heard saying: ‘There are bars on the doors, I don’t know why… they kicked me out, hurry up!
‘Yeah, they were taking some DHB or something. I don’t know. Some GHB and drops or something… I don’t know, send an ambulance here. And the police.’
When police and paramedics were finally allowed into the apartment, they found a naked man lying unconscious on the floor.
He was taken to hospital where he later recovered and discharged himself.
It later emerged that Father Zmarzły who was suspended following the incident had also been looking for hookups on the gay dating app Grindr.
According to his former partner who contacted local newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza, Zmarzły turned to the dating app after being unsure about becoming a priest.
The former partner said: ‘At the end of his studies at the seminary, Tomek, aware of his homosexuality, hesitated about whether to accept priestly ordination at all.
‘He [went on] Grindr but he finally decided to become a priest.’
Local outrage in the strongly Catholic town saw one man attempting to burn down the church and ‘the faithful’ stopped their children attending service.
The local mayor also cut off ties with the church which is overseen by the diocese of Sosnowiec.
Posting on social media at the time, mayor Arkadiusz Chęciński said: ‘As a city, we are famous for tolerance and respect for all faiths and views.
‘However, due to recent reports from the diocese negatively influencing opinions about the city, the outrage of the inhabitants and the lack of a clear dissociation from these matters forces me to make the unpleasant decision to suspend the city’s cooperation with the Diocese of Sosnowiec until real corrective actions are taken.’
The disgraced priest also faced a backlash from his colleagues.
A fellow member of the clergy said: ‘It’s time to stop pretending. Everyone in our community knew that he had a huge problem with sexuality.
‘However, nothing was done to help him solve the problem.’
Following his arrest this week, prosecutor spokesman Waldemar Łubniewski told the Polish Press Agency: ‘Three of the charges are drug-related offences, one of which is for giving another person an illegal substance.
‘Another charge is related to violating another person’s sexual freedom.
‘The fourth charge concerns causing serious bodily injury and failing to provide assistance to a person whose health and life was in danger.’
The spokesman did not give specifics of the sexual charge, but it is known to carry a maximum penalty of up to eight years in prison.
Zmarzły is yet to comment following his arrest on Monday, but when the scandal was first reported, he sent a statement to the Gazeta Wyborcza newspaper denying all the allegations.
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