Between Western Pomerania and Greater Poland: the formation of the District Public Security Office in Gorzów Wielkopolski in 1945 and its first heads

The article describes the hitherto unclear beginning of the activities of the District Public Security Office in Gorzów. According to the research, the Gorzów PUBP was established on 17 May 1945. Its organisers were three officers sent here from the West Pomeranian Provincial Office of Public Security. On 26 July 1945, the PUBP was subordinated to the WUBP in Poznań. The first two PUBP heads, Marian Wojtalik and Henryk Bajszczak, were regarded by their superiors as completely unprepared to carry out their duties. Wojtalik ceased to hold office after two months, and his successor turned out to be a habitual criminal: he himself took little interest in the activities of his subordinates, tolerated their unlawful activities, and engaged in extra-legal activities himself. It is difficult to explain why he was not convicted of them despite the numerous consistent testimonies of his subordinates. He was only sentenced to one year’s imprisonment for two illegal trips to Berlin. In turn, the third head, Stanisław Zagórski, proved to be the ‘right’ one. As it turned out later, his zealotry stemmed from an obscure criminal past. The PUBP in Gorzów, for the first six months of its operation, became more known for its unlawful activities than for ensuring the settlers’ safety.