On Thursday, 9 March this year, at 4:10 p.m., on Lwówecka Street in Lubań, officers from the Independent Police Prevention Unit in Legnica, who were on duty in the city, signalled to the driver of a VW Passat to stop.
The driver failed to comply with the instructions, accelerated sharply and began to flee. The officers immediately pursued him, ordering him to stop using their visual and audible signals. The police informed the duty officer of the situation, and he relayed information about the incident to other patrols.
While fleeing along Różana Street, the driver lost control of the vehicle and left the public road, then slid onto unpaved ground. The manoeuvre was dangerous because he crossed a pavement used by pedestrians, thereby creating a road-safety hazard. The driver of the VW Passat and his passenger began fleeing on foot, and uniformed officers set off in pursuit.
The men did not respond to the officers’ orders. Their efforts were unsuccessful, as the pursuing officers’ determination led to the apprehension of the 44-year-old. As it turned out, the officers’ suspicions were correct. Checks in the databases showed that the man was subject to active court bans on driving motor vehicles.
The apprehended 44-year-old was taken into police custody. On Friday, he was charged with failing to stop for a traffic check and driving a car despite being subject to a court-imposed driving ban, offences punishable by up to five years in prison. In connection with the offence of causing a road-safety hazard, a motion seeking punishment was submitted to the court.
There is one positive aspect to the entire incident: no one was injured.