Six killed in high-speed car chase
2010-07-14 09:01
Pretoria - Six people were killed and four injured in a high-speed police chase near Soshanguve that saw a BMW crash into a bakkie, several pedestrians and a tree before exploding, a police spokesperson said on Wednesday.
Three pedestrians were killed, two suspected robbers died after being flung from the car, and a third burnt to death when it exploded, said Warrant Officer Matthews Nkoadi.
The drama started on the R80 on the Mabopane highway around 13:30 on Tuesday, when the police tried to pull over a BMW.
"The driver accelerated... and the police gave chase up to the M20 [in Soshanguve, Pretoria] where the BMW skipped a four-way stop and collided with a bakkie," said Nkoadi.
Four pedestrians hit
"The BMW rolled and during the process it hit four pedestrians who were walking on the side of the road, including a 7-year-old girl."
The driver and passenger of the bakkie were seriously injured. The girl was in a critical condition in hospital.
There were four occupants in the BMW - two died after being flung from the vehicle while two others were in the car when it crashed into a tree.
"When it hit the tree, they [bystanders] could pull one passenger out but the driver was trapped. Seconds after the one passenger was pulled out, the car exploded, burning the driver to ashes," said Nkoadi.
The rescued passenger was also in a critical condition in hospital. Police found several household appliances in the car.
