The former head of Poland’s Military Counterintelligence Service (SKW), Maciej Materka, has pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against him today by the prosecutor’s office. In a post on the X platform, he emphasized that all operational activities had been carried out “on the basis of legally required decisions and court approvals, including approvals from the Supreme Court.” He also noted that the way the public debate on Pegasus has been conducted harms the interests of the state and undermines trust in the special services.
On Wednesday, charges were brought against former head of the Internal Security Agency (ABW), Piotr P., and former head of the Military Counterintelligence Service, Maciej Materka (who consented to the publication of his full personal details – editor’s note), in connection with authorizing and using the Pegasus system without the required accreditation and without verifying whether the system met the standards for the protection of classified information, the National Prosecutor’s Office announced.
In a statement published on X, Maciej Materka stressed that he does not admit to the charges.
“Today I heard prosecutorial charges concerning the alleged abuse of authority in connection with actions I undertook at SKW involving the Pegasus system. I did not plead guilty to the acts I am accused of,” the former head of SKW wrote.
“As Head of SKW, it was my duty to provide SKW officers with the necessary and best tools to carry out their statutory tasks. I would also like to emphasize that all operational activities conducted during my leadership at SKW were undertaken solely on the basis of legally required decisions and court approvals, including approvals from the Supreme Court,” the statement reads.
Materka stressed that he served Poland with distinction for 24 years. “I have continuously performed managerial duties since 2007, under various political administrations. I was promoted, decorated, and also earned recognition from our allies,” he added.
“At the same time, I believe that the manner in which the public discussion about Pegasus and the work of the special services in general has been conducted over recent years — often without knowledge of the facts and the law, in an infantile and frequently politicized way — harms the interests of the state, undermines trust in the special services, and facilitates the actions of enemies of our Homeland,” Materka concluded.
The general’s defense attorney, Bartosz Lewandowski, also commented on the matter, emphasizing that the charges against the former head of SKW are an insult to Poland’s uniformed services.
“It is worth recalling who has been charged. Gen. Materka is a professional who has served the Homeland for over 20 years. In April 2023, he was awarded the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) Director’s Award. In September 2023, for his involvement in carrying out joint tasks between SKW and AFOSI, he was awarded the officer’s rank of the Legion of Merit. General, it is an honor to be your defense counsel,” the lawyer stressed.