Murder mystery | | Humberside - land of opportunity for many Poles |
There is a city where work is seemingly everywhere, the taxes are low and there's a chance to earn three times your hourly rate. No, this isn't Tokyo or Geneva but Hull, and for tens of thousands Polish workers it offers the chance of a lifetime.
A weekly Sunday meeting in the city centre sees an old church hall packed with Poles who've come to East Yorkshire in search of a better life. The Polish people come to England because the wages in Poland are very low and they need more money for their families. One man who did just that was 31-year-old Krystof Kruk who came to Humberside for the good life. But this man would be dead within his first week of life in Hull - a death that would lead to an investigation into the conduct of Humberside Police. Polish roots
The story of Krystof Kruk began in Szcezcin in North Eastern Poland, Hull's twin city. It can be a troubled place with its fair share of poverty and crime.
But in 2005 there was hope for the people in Szcezcin when Poland became part of the EU, meaning every citizen could earn abroad. That's what drew Krystof to Yorkshire. His father was a peasant farmer - money was tight, and it was a life from which Krystof wanted to escape: "Krystof was a happy lad, he liked to have fun, he didn't pick on anyone or cause harm to anybody, and the reason he went to England wasn't to visit the country but to get work. "And I didn't hold him back at all because he was a grown man and he needed a job." Father, Unas Polska.
So in early September 2005 Krystof set out on his 1,000 mile journey. It was a time of excitement, money and guaranteed graft. Once in East Yorkshire Krystof easily found a job as a butcher. His surroundings were modest at best but Krystof was believed to be enjoying his new life in Hull. He was really looking forward to his first Friday night in the city. Yet it was his first weekend night out in the city that would end his life. Tragic night out The details are unclear but it seems Krystof was out on the town. He was known for liking a drink and having a good laugh. But Inside Out doesn't know for sure where he went or how much he'd been drinking - if at all. Sometime after eleven o'clock Krystof was on his way to Circus Circus. He was still keen on continuing his night out, but the staff at the bar were thinking differently.
The Police are releasing little about what happened to Krystof that night - but Inside Out obtained a letter sent to Humberside Police.
| "I was horrified when I read the paper the next day and saw he'd been killed on Beverley Road within minutes of being driven away from here." | | Night club door man |
It's from a staff member of Circus Circus. He didn't want to talk to us but this is what he said in the letter: "It was the evening of Saturday the 17th of September and I was on duty. I'd say at around 20 past 11 to about half past
.. me and the head doorman refused entry to a man I later found out was Krystof Kruk."
According to the letter, Krystof was asked to leave but the staff at Circus Circus believed he was drunk and he wasn't having any of it:
"He became agitated and started pushing and shoving at the doors. We radioed to the CCTV control room and we then asked for police assistance as we reckoned the man was a danger to others and himself. They came and I say it was about 11.30-11.40." Krystof was taken away in a police van.
He was released on Beverley Road towards his home and some way from the Circus Circus pub. What happened next is unclear, but some time later an ambulance was called just after midnight after Mr Kruk was hit by a taxi on Beverley Road and he died from his injuries. A family's grief
Back in Poland Krystof Kruk's family are devastated: "When you don't talk about it it doesn't hurt so much, you don't think about it all the time. But when you start talking about it, your heart starts to squeeze itself and crush itself. "With time the pain may relent but when will that be?"
Father, Unas Polska.
The terrible news came on an ordinary autumn day:
"We didn't know anything - two weeks we waited which was very hard because we just needed him back to bury him... why does god always have to take the special children?" says his mother Kaleeshmee Kruk. So why was Krystof Kruk released, and how drunk was he, if at all?
He was dropped off in a big city in which he was a stranger and where cars drove on the 'wrong' side of the road. "They've been numerous cases in the past few years going into the police duty of care.
"And what they say is the police have a duty of care to anyone they detain. "They don't have to be under arrest, they have to be in detention because once the police take somebody into custody in a police car, van or station and deprive them of them of their freedom of manoeuvre and they have to ensure that person's safety." Mike McColgan, Solicitor with Liberty.
Duty of care There is no evidence that the officers in this case breached their duty of care. Sources close to the investigation told Inside Out that Mr Kruk was not arrested for being drunk and he was able to walk unaided. The case has now been handed over to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPPC) and Cleveland Police are now investigating their counterparts on East Yorkshire. Humberside Police are limited as to what they can say but did provide us with a brief statement. It confirms the IPCC is investigating the period of time Mr Kruk was in contact with their officers, while Humberside are investigating the road traffic accident.
The force acknowledges there is proper public interest in the incident but says it would be inappropriate to make comment at this time as such comment may be speculative and potentially damaging to the investigation. Desperate for answers Back in Poland Krystof's family is desperate for answers, and his father says: "Here in Poland
we are far behind the UK but if we found a dog in the street, we would take it to shelter. "The police stopped someone who didn't have any documents, couldn't speak the language. They should've kept him long enough till they worked out who he was."
The family still feel they are some way off from knowing the answers they want.
And perhaps the only person who knows the full story of what happened that night in Hull is Krystof Kruk Links relating to this story:The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites | 
Inside Out - Yorkshire & Lincolnshire: Monday February 13, 2006
