Car chase

Drunk driver played cat and mouse with police

The intoxicated man had 2.04 per mille (symbolic image)(Bild: APA/Georg Hochmuth (Symbolbild))

An unlicensed but drunk 30-year-old driver played cat and mouse with the police in Wels on Monday night. After a half-hour chase, he was nevertheless caught.

At around 10.30 p.m. on Sunday in Wels, there was an accident with material damage in which the driver fled the scene. In the course of patrolling, the police were alerted by the second driver involved in the accident, who stated that an accident with property damage had occurred in Thalheim and that he had been following the person who had caused the accident. The car he was looking for was parked at Lokalbahnplatz. When the police were noticed, the driver fled in the direction of Maria-Theresia-Straße with screeching tires.

Endangering other road users
The police patrol took up the pursuit and a search for the car with French license plates was immediately initiated. In the course of the 30-minute manhunt, the driver of the car drove at far too high a speed, behaved recklessly and endangered other drivers and pedestrians.

Hidden between trucks
At 11 p.m., the car finally drove along Europastrasse in the direction of Westring, tried to hide between trucks at the gravel parking lot, but was noticed by the patrols. The two occupants got out of the car and the driver was provisionally arrested.

No driver's license
It turned out that the 30-year-old driver from the district of Gmunden did not have a valid driving license. A breathalyzer test resulted in a positive reading: 2.04 per mille! The keys to the car were taken away and driving was prohibited. During the search of the car, a knuckleduster was provisionally seized. In addition, narcotics were found and seized. 

No license
The arrest was revoked after the investigations on site. With regard to the French license plates, it was determined that there is no valid registration for the car. Further investigations are being carried out.