Prison for Czechs

Wild escape through Tyrol in a stolen VW bus

The stop in Außerfern (symbolic image) was dangerous for the police officers.

(Bild: APA/dpa/Jens Wolf (Symbolbild))

It could have ended much worse: A Czech man (42) without a driver's license fled across Tyrol in a stolen VW bus. It became extremely dangerous when the police tried to stop him. The motive also came up at the trial . . .

On August 20 in Tux in the Zillertal valley, the 42-year-old really blew all his fuses. He stole an e-bike, loaded it into another stolen VW bus and sped off in the direction of Außerfern. His daring drive ended at the Lermoos exit when the police stopped him.

I drank a bottle of vodka while sitting on a bench"

Der Angeklagte

Drunk and driving without a license
Particularly delicate: The man - who has been in Austria for about a year and works as a dishwasher - had already had his driving license revoked in his country of origin for driving under the influence of drugs. But he was also driving drunk. "I drank a bottle of vodka beforehand while sitting on a bench," he said at the trial.

Defendant: "Missed my pregnant girlfriend" 

He quickly came up with the reason: "I missed my pregnant girlfriend in the Czech Republic and wanted to drive to her." He openly admitted that this "short-sighted act" was not particularly wise: "I'm really very sorry and I simply didn't think about it enough at the time."

The man had many previous convictions (symbolic image).

(Bild: APA/Barbara Gindl)

Police seen, stepped on the gas
When confronted by the police, the man only stopped briefly, but then continued his journey by "stepping on the gas", as one police officer stated as a witness. A second police officer therefore had to spontaneously "jump to the side", and other road users were also acutely endangered. A short time later, the drive at high speed - the police officer spoke of around 120 to 140 km/h - finally came to an end when a barricade was erected.

Defendant "panicked" when stopped by police
"I certainly didn't want to hurt anyone and I certainly didn't drive towards the police officer on purpose," the man justified himself. However, when he saw the two police officers' weapons, he simply "panicked" and "wanted to get away" as quickly as possible.

Eberherr: "High level of guilt"
 The judge ultimately considered two years' unconditional imprisonment to be an appropriate sentence. Also due to the Czech's no fewer than 14 previous convictions. "All in all, the offenses show a high degree of guilt," said the judge in her reasoning.