Józef Różański

Who was Józef Różański?

Józef Różański was a Jewish communist in prewar Second Polish Republic, member of the Soviet NKVD and later, colonel of the Stalinist Ministry of Public Security of Poland. Born into a Jewish family in Warsaw, Różański became active in the Communist Party of Poland before World War II. He joined NKVD following the Soviet invasion of Poland and after the war, adopting the name Różański, served as interrogator with the Polish communist security apparatus.

Różański was personally involved in torturing and maiming dozens of opponents of the Polish puppet government; including anti-communist activists, as well as other, more moderate communists, and Cursed soldiers. He gained notoriety as one of the most brutal secret police interrogators in Warsaw. Różański personally administered torture to Witold Pilecki, one of the Righteous Among Nations. Pilecki revealed no sensitive information and was executed on May 25, 1948 at Mokotów Prison by Sergeant Smietanski, the "Butcher".

Józef Różański was arrested in 1953 – at the end of the Stalinist period in Poland – and charged with torturing innocent prisoners including Polish United Workers' Party members. He was sentenced to 5 years in prison on 23 December 1955. In July 1956 the Supreme Court reopened his case due to improprieties discovered in the original investigation. On 11 November 1957 he was again sentenced by the lower court this time to 15 years in prison. He was released in 1964, having served seven years. Różański died of cancer on 21 August 1981, and was buried at the Jewish Cemetery in Warsaw.