- Two young French people (18 and 19 years old) allegedly stole a BMW X5 and an Audi RS Q8 in Herisau AR.
- After a chase on the A1, both men were arrested in the canton of Aargau.
- The perpetrators are said to have broken into a garage and stolen license plates from parked vehicles.
Two suspected car thieves chased the police in the canton of Aargau on Saturday morning. The two young Frenchmen are said to have stolen a BMW X5 and an Audi RS Q8 in Herisau AR during the night. They probably wanted to flee in the vehicles towards France.
Both men were arrested and reported to law enforcement Canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden handed over, as reported by the Aargau cantonal police.
Several police forces on duty
The Aargau cantonal police received a tip on Saturday morning that two cars had been stolen on Cilanderstrasse in Herisau during the night. The two vehicles were subsequently noticed as suspicious in the canton of St. Gallen.
Several patrols from the regional and city police as well as the cantonal police were immediately called out to initiate a large-scale manhunt. Also patrols of the Federal Office of Customs and border security were involved in the operation.
Car gets stuck in field
Shortly before 8 a.m. the BMW X5 was on the A1 heading towards Bern exit of the Baregg tunnel spotted by a cantonal police patrol. The police immediately began pursuing the vehicle. The 18-year-old Frenchman who was driving the BMW accelerated and drove off the motorway in Mägenwil. He collided sideways with another vehicle. He then tried to drive across a field, but got stuck in the car and was stopped after a short run on foot, it is said.
The Audi RS Q8 was spotted a short time later driving on the A1 towards Bern, near Schafisheim. Several cantonal police patrols then tried to stop the vehicle. The 19-year-old Frenchman then accelerated sharply and drove towards the canton of Solothurn. Shortly after Rothrist, the Audi driver was stopped with the help of the Solothurn canton police.
Two Frenchmen temporarily arrested
According to current knowledge, the perpetrators broke into a garage in Herisau, rammed a gate with a vehicle and fled in the aforementioned BMW and Audi. The license plates used were also stolen from parked vehicles in the Herisau region.
The two Frenchmen were temporarily arrested and transferred to the law enforcement authorities of the canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden. Because there was suspicion that they were under the influence of drugs or medication, a blood and urine sample was taken from the two drivers.
Jonas Bucher is a publisher and deputy co-head of the news desk at 20 Minutes. He has been working in the media industry for 25 years and has always remained loyal to 20 Minutes.
