It was February 6, 2006. Winter holidays were underway in Rybnik. On Monday, 8-year-old Mateusz Domaradzki left the house around 2 pm on a sledge – red, with a rope. He was wearing two pairs of pants. It was freezing, there was also a lot of snow, and the boy managed to persuade his parents to let him go alone. He was supposed to go skiing down the estate hill, together with other children. Still around 14.27 he was seen near the “depta”. Then he literally fell to the ground.
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He got out on the sledge and sank into the ground. “Somehow that day I had a bad feeling”
In the afternoon, the concerned mother notified the police. The search began, but it was hampered by heavy snow and frost. – It was still light, there were no children on the hill. Already then such fear seized me. I called out “Mateusz”, but there was such a dead silence. I was still looking for him later at the ice rink, in the common room, he was nowhere to be found. I’ve never been looking for Mateusz so early before, but somehow that day I had a bad feeling. Somehow I was more and more afraid – recalled Barbara, Mateusz’s mother in the pages. The family also joined the search for the police, officers with tracking dogs appeared. At night the temperature outside dropped to -18 degrees Celsius. Over the next few days, snowdrifts, the area around the Ruda River, railway tracks, meadows, but also shops, hotels, vacant buildings and hospitals were searched. To no avail, although neighbors testified that they saw him near a house or a church. Mateusz’s photos were hung on poles in Rybnik and were also published in the national media.
Clairvoyants, witnesses and bizarre clues. Only a scarf was found
Phones rang, more witnesses came forward. They were supposed to see the 8-year-old in Katowice, Kutno, Ruda Śląska, Jastrzębie-Zdrój, and even in Wrocław. Someone was sure that the boy was on the bus from Gliwice to Bytom. Parents contacted the clairvoyant, others began to come to the police station, convincing about exceptional abilities and claiming that they knew what had happened to the boy. He was to be dragged into the car by a “rude-looking” man, a pervert hunter took him by train to the unknown, kidnapped and imprisoned by the postman. One of the clairvoyants even claimed that he was kidnapped to be sold to Sweden. In an anonymous letter, someone argued that Mateusz had been kidnapped by circus performers to train animals. The police checked every, even the most bizarre, lead. Two weeks later, however, only a scarf made of the same material as the boy’s hat was found, but the family was no longer sure whether it belonged to Mateusz or was lost by his siblings.
They killed Mateusz Domaradzki? Although they pleaded guilty, they changed their testimony
In March 2006, the police arrested two young men. 25-year-old Tomasz Z. lived in the same housing estate as the missing Mateusz. Łukasz N. is Tomasz Z’s cousin four years younger. The reason for the detention was suspicion of molestation and exposing himself to children. During interrogation, the two unexpectedly confessed to raping the missing 8-year-old. The boy was about to threaten to tell his mother, so they beat him to death and hid the body. They said they couldn’t remember where because they were too drunk. Though they testified separately, the details matched. They mentioned, among others about two pairs of pants. However, they soon recanted their testimony. They asserted their innocence, blamed each other and presented subsequent versions of events.
– I really do not know where the corpse is, if I knew, I would say – said Tomasz Z. during one of the interrogations, which was reached by Wiadomości.gazeta.pl. – It’s all made up, I didn’t really do it. It wasn’t as I imagined it, he assured another time. In the meantime, the case of the educational center of the Borromeo Sisters in Zabrze, attended by Tomasz Z, came to light. There were supposed to be beatings and rapes on the children staying there. A second investigation was launched in this case as well, ending with a prison sentence for the sister of the director of the institution.
The court sentenced them to 25 years in prison for killing an 8-year-old boy. The body has not been found to this day
Although Mateusz Domaradzki’s body has not been found, the trial has started. It was based only on circumstantial evidence. I’m fighting for a baby now. I will not let my child die. Neither the prosecutor’s office nor the media. The fact that they found some two idiots who confessed does not mean that my child is dead, after all, they did not find his body – assured the mother of the 8-year-old. To this day, Mateusz’s family does not believe in the testimonies of the accused. They believe the boy is alive. In 2008, the verdict was passed. Tomasz Z. and Łukasz N. were convicted of rape and fatal beating of Mateusz Domaradzki, as well as other crimes against minors. Both receive 25 years in prison. The sentence was upheld despite appeals and requests for clemency submitted to the president.
Mateusz Domaradzki disappeared 17 years ago. “Until I see the body, I will hope it comes back”
It’s been 17 years since Mateusz Domaradzki disappeared. To this day, no body or trace has been found. The family is convinced that Mateusz will finally be found. – No body, no. Until I see the body, I will not believe in Mateusz’s death and I will hope that he will come back – my mother has been repeating for years. In 2016, they suggested to her that the family should end the search. “The police officer said, ‘Why don’t you acknowledge your son’s death and we’ll close the case?’ It’s been 10 years already. You could ask for compensation, put up a monument, son. I burst out laughing: Should I bury my child while I’m alive?! You haven’t found the body! – .
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
