Police officers opened fire to stop a stolen vehicle in the Stoubtsy District. The car was ultimately stopped with the help of a BMW driver who deliberately put his own vehicle in harm’s way, the Belarusian Interior Ministry reported.
On the morning of March 9, police received a report about the theft of a Volkswagen in the Stoubtsy District. The vehicle was later spotted on the M1 highway heading toward Minsk.
A nearby traffic police patrol caught up with the car and signaled the driver to stop, but he accelerated instead. A chase began. Attempting to escape, the driver swerved across the road, creating a threat to people’s lives and safety.
To stop the vehicle, traffic police officers used their service weapons. The Volkswagen was ultimately stopped with the help of a BMW driver who deliberately put his own car in its path.
“That’s how my uncle raised me. I’ve lived here for many years and I always help,” the BMW driver said. “He drove into me from behind at such speed; he was barely braking. There was a bus on my right side and I was standing on the left side. He had nowhere to go. I saw how he was braking, swerving like a snake. Then from behind I noticed police officers chasing him, telling him to stop, stop. But he wouldn’t. I saw the bus on the side — there were many people there. So I decided to take the risk to somehow stop him.”
The Interior Ministry said it would compensate the BMW driver for the damage to his vehicle and reward him for his assistance.
The car thief turned out to be a 29-year-old resident of the Minsk District. He was drunk — 2.7 per mille of alcohol was detected in his body. He had previously been repeatedly held accountable for drunk driving and had been stripped of his driving licence.
Police drew up 19 administrative reports against the suspect and opened a criminal case for car theft.
