A Polish man who tried in vain to save his friend from falling off a bridge and drowning in the River Ness has been kicked out of the UK.
Kamil Luczak has been deported back to Poland and is currently in jail over what his support worker claims a breach of bail conditions relating to an unpaid fine.
However, he is the subject of a hearing next month and hopes to return to the Highland capital to “start a new life”.
The Press and Journal previously reported that he had been detained just days after witnessing his friend and compatriot Marek Michalak fall into the water from the Greig Street bridge, in Inverness, on January 31.
Charity workers claimed he was suffering from post-traumatic stress after reports that he had grabbed Mr Michalak’s hand to try to save him – but was not strong enough to prevent him from being swept away.
Police have never confirmed the identity of the missing person – however a man’s body was washed up on Nairn’s West Beach in March.
Lawyer Aldona Fryc-Danielewska, who worked with both men as a volunteer at the Polish Support Group Inverness, said that Mr Luczak had been removed from the country.
“He was taken by surprise and sent back to Poland. He is there in prison. He didn’t pay a fine in Poland,” she told the Press and Journal.
“The tribunal is on August 22. The tribunal is first tier. There’s a chance he will be there.
“There’s nowhere for him to go when he gets out. He wants to come back here. He has got a business plan and a lot of connections here.
“He wants to start a new life. It depends on the decision.”
After being detained in Inverness just a few days after the incident, Mr Luczak was transferred to the Colnbrook immigration removal centre in London.
He claimed that he had suffered from insomnia and had initially been denied medical treatment while at the centre, having his appointments with a doctor cancelled four times.
A Home Office spokesman said: “Foreign nationals who abuse our hospitality by committing crimes in the UK should be in no doubt of our determination to deport them.
“We will use every available power to take action against those foreign criminals who cause significant problems in the UK, including those from countries within the European Union.”
