Opel Mokka crashes with seven passengers after reckless driving - driver apprehended during escape

According to current findings of the Traffic Accident Service (VUD) Hannover, a patrol car crew noticed an Opel Mokka on Saturday, January 18, 2025, around 01:50 AM, which was traveling at significantly excessive speed on Bischofsholer Damm towards Lindemannallee. The officers initiated a pursuit and followed the vehicle onto the Messeschnellweg heading south. Despite using special rights and exceeding the permissible maximum speed, the patrol car crew barely managed to catch up with the speeding Opel.

The driver steered the Opel Mokka at the Seelhorster cross towards Südschnellweg. On the exit, he lost control of the vehicle, which collided twice with the left guardrail before it finally came to a stop. The driver's door immediately opened, and a young man got out, crossed the guardrail, and ran towards the dense undergrowth there.

Six other passengers also got out of the vehicle, who were detained on the spot by the patrol car crew. The Opel Mokka is designed for a maximum of five people, which means the vehicle was overcrowded with a total of seven occupants. Additional requested forces searched the undergrowth for the fleeing driver, suspecting that he had not gotten far and was hiding there. After announcing the continuation of the search with the help of a service dog, a young man emerged from the thicket, identified himself, and approached the officers.

During the check of the 19-year-old from Laatzen, the officers smelled alcohol and found cannabis in a quantity that exceeded the permissible limit during his search. The young man could not produce a driver's license; a digital query confirmed that he did not have a valid driving license. In addition, the forces secured the narcotics and two unassignable cell phones found in the footwell of the car.

The man was presented to a doctor for a blood test to determine whether and to what extent he was under the influence of alcohol and drugs. The remaining passengers, aged between 17 and 21 from Laatzen and Neustadt am Rübenberge, were released after the measures were completed.

The 19-year-old is now suspected of having committed several crimes with his reckless driving. The police are investigating for an illegal motor vehicle race, driving without a license, endangering road traffic due to alcohol and drugs, and unauthorized removal from the accident site. /ms

For inquiries, please contact:

Hannover Police Directorate
Marcus Schmieder
Phone: 0511 109-1040
Email: pressestelle@pd-h.polizei.niedersachsen.de
https://www.pd-h.polizei-nds.de

Original content from: Hannover Police Directorate, transmitted by news aktuell