The European Public Prosecutor’s Office has charged two more suspects in Poland as part of an investigation into alleged public procurement fraud and corruption related to the modernization of the tram infrastructure in the Upper Silesia-Zagłębie Metropolis. Polish media report that the case involves Tramwaje Śląskie S.A., the operator of the region’s tram network.
At the request of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Katowice, officers from Poland’s Central Anti-Corruption Bureau have detained two more suspects as part of the investigation. The two are high-ranking public officials and have been charged with corruption.
Preventive measures have been ordered against the suspects, including police supervision. In the case of one of them, the authorities also decided to suspend him from his duties.
According to the Polish publication ŚLĄZAG, the two detained individuals are the president and vice president of the management board of Tramwaje Śląskie S.A.. The arrests took place in Chorzów and Katowice.
European funds totaling EUR 448.3 million
The investigation concerns suspicions of active and passive corruption in connection with the modernization of the tram infrastructure in the Upper Silesia-Zagłębie Metropolis, a major urban area in southern Poland.
According to the EPPO, the investigation concerns a company responsible for the tram infrastructure in this region, whose projects were funded by the European Union with PLN 1.9 billion, equivalent to EUR 448.3 million, during the period 2007–2027.
The Polish media notes that the investigation is being supervised by the EPPO because the allegations concern European funds allocated for the modernization and expansion of the tram infrastructure. The case involves allegations of active and passive corruption, abuse of office, illegal influence over the outcome of procurement procedures, and actions detrimental to the public interest.
11 people have been charged
According to the Polish media, 11 people have so far been charged in the case involving alleged corruption in procurement procedures for the modernization of tram infrastructure in Upper Silesia and the Dąbrowa Basin.
The case became public in December 2025, when the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau detained four people. Among them was an investment director at Tramwaje Śląskie, identified by the Polish media as Roman M. The other three were businesspeople interested in contracts with the company.
The EPPO stated at the time that a high-ranking public official is suspected of having provided confidential information to a favored company to ensure that it would win a contract for the modernization and development of the tram infrastructure.
The contract in question was worth over EUR 1 million, equivalent to PLN 5 million, and was funded through the European Infrastructure, Climate, and Environment Program 2021–2027.
During searches conducted in December, investigators seized approximately EUR 38,000 in cash and a gold bar. According to the Polish press, in a subsequent search, the CBA reportedly found and seized 1 million zlotys in cash.
Tramwaje Śląskie says it has the status of an aggrieved party
Tramwaje Śląskie stated, through spokesperson Robert Walczak, that the document received by the company indicates that one of the detainees has been suspended from his duties, and the charges against the second are unrelated to his position within the company.
“The document received by our company today indicates that one of the individuals detained has been suspended from his duties. The charges against the second individual are unrelated to his position within the company. No investigative activities by the prosecutor’s office or other agencies have been conducted at the Tramwaje Śląskie S.A. headquarters for months. In the ongoing case that began last December and is being supervised by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, the company has the status of an injured party. Since receiving information about this situation in December 2025, we have been cooperating with the investigating authorities. The company is operating normally. “The first test runs took place in the Chorzów market,” Robert Walczak told ŚLĄZAG.
Inflated costs and fictitious work
In an update released in May, the EPPO stated that a high-ranking public official, who has been in pretrial detention since December 2025, is suspected of having provided confidential information to a favored company starting in 2021 to ensure it was awarded a contract.
According to investigators, the evidence gathered so far points to a corruption scheme in which inflated costs were approved and fictitious work was billed. As a result of the EPPO investigation, other potential crimes were prevented, and the tender in question was canceled.
The CBA estimates, according to the Polish press, that the total value of the benefits received by the individuals suspected of participating in the corruption scheme amounts to approximately 637,000 euros, equivalent to about 2.7 million zlotys.
EPPO Requested the Waiver of a Lawmaker’s Immunity
On May 5, 2026, the European Chief Prosecutor requested that the Sejm, the lower house of the Polish Parliament, waive the immunity of a sitting lawmaker suspected of influence peddling in the same investigation.
The EPPO stated that the evidence indicates that financial benefits were allegedly offered to a member of Parliament on several occasions. Lifting immunity is necessary to continue the investigation and establish all the facts, including by gathering both incriminating evidence and evidence that could be favorable to the person concerned.
The EPPO and the CBA have not officially disclosed the name of the parliamentarian. However, the Polish media has reported that the request is believed to concern a Civic Coalition MP, Wojciech Król.
The EPPO is the European Union’s independent prosecutor’s office and has the authority to investigate, prosecute, and bring to trial crimes affecting the EU’s financial interests.
Poland joined the EPPO in 2024, becoming the 23rd participating member state. The institution investigates cases of fraud involving European funds, corruption, public procurement fraud, and other crimes that may harm the Union’s budget.
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