Teens Charged in Polish Painter’s Death

WARSAW, Poland (AP) _ Warsaw authorities charged two teenagers Friday in the stabbing death of surrealist painter Zdzislaw Beksinski. One suspect is the son of a longtime Beksinski friend and aide.

Beksinski, 75, considered one of Poland’s leading contemporary artists, was found stabbed to death Monday at his Warsaw home. He was best known for his abstract renditions of skeletons, monster-like creatures and other apocalyptic images evoking death and decay.

A suspect identified as Robert K., 19, the son of a Beksinski friend and aide, was charged with murder, police said. A 16-year-old relative of the two men, Lukasz K., was charged with accessory to murder.

The 19-year-old confessed to killing the painter, prosecutor Zbigniew Zelaznicki said.

There were no signs of forced entry or robbery at the painter’s home.

``We are moved by the senselessness and the ruthlessness of the crime,″ Ryszard Siewierski, Warsaw’s chief inspector, said in announcing the charges.

A motive was not clear, although it appeared the 19-year-old suspect had tried to borrow money from Beksinski, Zelaznicki said.