Polish prosecutors brought charges on Wednesday against three medical workers over a case in which a Romanian man starved himself to death in protest against his arrest, the PAP state news agency reported.

Claudiu Crulic, accused of theft, went on hunger strike in 2007 while being held in custody in the Polish city of Krakow. His death in hospital in January 2008 triggered the resignation of Romania's foreign minister, Adrian Cioroianu.

The three defendants are a medical officer at the prison in Krakow where Crulic, 33, had been held and two workers at the hospital where he was taken in a very poor physical condition one day before he died weighing just 26 kg (57 lb).

PAP said the prosecutor's office may bring further charges in the case, which made front page headlines in both Poland and Romania. Some commentators said the Romanian authorities failed to provide proper assistance to Crulic.

Reuters