Sometimes, some people use social networks to brag about some very reprehensible behaviors. An example is those drivers who record themselves doing reckless things on the road, showing a clear disregard for the safety of other road users. And this was the case of a motorist who shared a video on Instagram traveling at 247 km/h on a highway in Andalusia. And his need to show this condemnable “deed” to his followers has allowed the Civil Guard to hunt him down.
In fact, a citizen reported it to the email collaborator@guardiacivil.com. It was then that the Traffic Investigation and Analysis Group (G.I.A.T.) of the Traffic Subsector of the Civil Guard of Almería began the investigations to identify and locate the offender.
The analysis and study of the images made it possible to locate the specific place where the events occurred (A7 highway, near the La Redonda industrial estate, in the municipality of El Ejido), as well as determine the model of car he was driving (Mercedes GLC 63S AMG). It is a high-performance SUV that has a 510 HP biturbo V8 block. A brutal engine that accelerates in 3.8 seconds from 0 to 10 km/h seconds and self-limits its maximum speed to 280 km/h. The German brand has recently launched the GLC 63 S E Performance plug-in hybrid version on the market, which is even more powerful (680 HP).
Subsequent investigations managed to give the name and surname to the reckless driver, a man of Spanish nationality who will not only have to pay the corresponding fine from the DGT for committing this very serious infraction (600 euros) but also faces a crime against road safety, for exceeding speed limits.
Article 379.1 of the aforementioned legal text establishes that whoever drives a motor vehicle or a moped at a speed greater than 60 km/h on urban roads or 80 km/h higher than that permitted by regulation on interurban roads, will be punished with the penalty of imprisonment of 3 to 6 months or a fine of 6 to 12 months or community service of 31 to 90 days, and, in any case, deprivation of the right to drive motor vehicles and mopeds for periods of more than 1 and up to 4 years.
As we have previously indicated, the investigation was activated by a citizen’s complaint. In this case it was due to a video shared on social networks, but there is also the possibility of doing so when reckless behavior is identified on the road that endangers other road users. To do this, evidence must be collected to demonstrate the facts reported. This is stated in Royal Decree 320/1994, of February 25, which approves the Regulation of sanctioning procedures in matters of traffic, circulation of motor vehicles and road safety.
Point 2 of article 4, on mandatory and voluntary complaints, indicates that “any person may, like the agents, file complaints for facts that may constitute violations of the precepts of the articulated text of the Law on traffic, circulation of motor vehicles and road safety or its Regulations.” This is what is known as a complaint upon request, through which the citizen urges a police officer or his city council to issue a complaint bulletin for a traffic violation that he has witnessed.
