Police chased a car from Vantaa to Helsinki

The pursuit damaged the target car, which was driving at a high rate of speed, and three police cars. Aggravated endangerment of traffic safety is suspected in the case.

On Friday, police chased a car that was driving well over the speed limit, according to the Eastern Uusimaa Police Department.

The chase, which lasted about half an hour, started in Vantaa and ended in Helsinki, and resulted in damage to three police vehicles and the fleeing car.

A car that had previously been searched spotted the police and fled from Valkoisenlähteentie towards Tuusulaväylä at approximately ten to six. The car had previously been taken into use without permission.

The fleeing car was momentarily lost during the chase, says Inspector Olavi Merihaara.

“There were so many patrols in the area that sometimes the car would show up and sometimes it would be lost.”

The Navy does not say exactly how many patrols participated in the chase.

The speed of the fleeing car cannot yet be determined, but Merihaara says the car was traveling “well above local traffic limits.”

At the moment, the case is suspected of at least aggravated endangerment of traffic safety, but other possible criminal charges are being investigated. The police are investigating the matter using video recordings, among other things.

“The situation occurred in very difficult places and the patrols used all possible means,” Merihaara says.

The patrols took special care to protect bystanders, Merihaara says. No bystanders were harmed during the chase.

The chase continued from Vantaa towards Helsinki. Finally, the car was stopped by the Eastern Uusimaa and Helsinki police departments in Tapulikaupunki at around 6:20 p.m. In total, the chase lasted about half an hour.

Of the three damaged police vehicles, two were damaged during the chase itself “after being hit by the target vehicle” and one was damaged during a stop, Merihaara says.

“Here, an attempt was made to drive the target car to a location where the arrest could be made as safely as possible.”