WARSAW, Poland (AP) — A funeral was held Saturday for one of two Polish men who died in a missile explosion near the border with Ukraine, deaths that Western officials said appeared to have been caused by a Ukrainian air defense missile that went astray.
White roses were placed on the wooden casket of Boguslaw Wos. A family member carried a black-and-white photo of him, while another man carried a crucifix bearing his name. Polish state news agency PAP described Wos as a 62-year-old warehouse manager.
Wos and another man died Tuesday in Przewodow, a small farming community 6 kilometers (4 miles) from the border with Ukraine as that country was defending itself against a barrage of Russian missiles directed at Ukraine’s power infrastructure.
Officials from Poland, NATO and the United States say they think Russia is to blame for the deaths no matter what because a Ukrainian missile would not have gone astray in Poland had the country not been forced to defend itself against Russian attacks.
A Polish investigation to determine the source of the missile and the circumstances of the explosion was launched with support from the U.S. and Ukrainian investigators.
To assist, the Pentagon sent a small team of forensics and explosive ordnance device experts to the missile impact site in Przewodow, a senior defense official said Friday on condition of anonymity, because they were not authorized to discuss details.
Wos' funeral took place in a village church and he was to be buried in the local cemetery, PAP said. A military honor guard and Polish officials and Ukrainian representatives joined the man's family and members of the community but the Wos family asked that media not attend.
Ukraine's consul general in the nearby city of Lublin placed a wreath in the colors of Ukraine, PAP reported.
The other victim, a 60-year-old tractor driver, is to be buried on Sunday.
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Tara Copp in Washington contributed.
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