Polish official accuses US of 'absolute ignorance' in seeking Polanski's arrest
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}FILE - In this Feb. 28, 2014 file photo Polish-French film director Roman Polanski holds his best director award during the 39th French Cesar Awards Ceremony in Paris, Friday Feb. 28, 2014. Prosecutors in Poland questioned filmmaker Roman Polanski on the request of U.S. prosecutors who are seeking his arrest on charges from 1977 of having sex with a minor, a spokeswoman said Thursday, Oct. 30, 2014. Spokeswoman for the prosecutors in Krakow, Boguslawa Marcinkowska, said the filmmaker remained free but available for further proceedings. (AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau, File) (The Associated Press)
An adviser to the Polish president has accused U.S. authorities of "absolute ignorance" in seeking the arrest of film director Roman Polanski, a Holocaust survivor, while he was in Poland last week for the opening of a Jewish history museum.
U.S. authorities sought Polanski's arrest on 1977 charges of having sex with a minor.
Polanski attended the opening of the museum in Warsaw on Oct. 28 before traveling to Krakow, his childhood city. Polish authorities questioned him there because of the U.S. request, but refused to arrest him.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Tomasz Nalecz, adviser to President Bronislaw Komorowski, called it inappropriate to seek the arrest of a "child of the Holocaust" at the opening of the museum, which highlights Poland's role as a safe haven for Jews for centuries before the Holocaust.