The driver who caused the terrible BMW with the robbery does not feel guilty: the patrol did not have to shoot me

“Police officer Aurimas Laužikas, as a professional in his field, had to understand and realize that after shooting a tire, a car can become unmanageable, leave its lane and cause serious consequences,” said D. Gedgaudas, who was sentenced to two and a half years in prison.

He appealed to the Lithuanian Supreme Court (LAT) to overturn the sentences of the Panevėžys regional and Lithuanian courts of appeal announced last year, in which Palanga was found guilty of seriously injuring three people during the accident and acquiring criminal property. The man, who had been sentenced to a real prison sentence, was convinced that he had been found guilty by mistake; the man had requested that the case be returned to the appeals court, which, in his opinion, should have issued an acquittal.

However, the Court of Cassation, which made final and unappealable decisions, found that the criminal case against Mr. Gedgaug had been examined in detail in the lower courts, that they had not committed any substantial violation of the Code of Criminal Procedure, and that the courts had applied the law accordingly.

“The fact that the lower courts reached different conclusions and made different decisions from those expected by the landlord does not in itself mean that the essential violations of criminal procedure indicated in the appeal were committed – the SCL judges rejected the appeal incompletely and improperly. “

They noted that Mr. Gedgaud was also sentenced, in addition to his custodial sentence, to a ban on exercising his special right to drive for three years.

Palangiškis was convicted of a traffic accident in 2018. February 5

According to the case data, it was established that D. Gedgaudas arrived in Lithuania by BMW 730 car from Estonia that day; here he stole 9,000 items stolen from an unidentified person. A car that is worth euros. Around 10 p.m. The man-driven car was seen by police officers: They were informed that a possibly stolen vehicle had entered Lithuania. After noticing BMW near the Panevėžys bypass, the officers decided to stop it, but the driver did not obey the requirements: after increasing speed, they tried to flee.

A police patrol team began chasing the fugitive, who did not respond to audible signals, lights that were on, or a demand to stop. Then one of the policemen fired a BMW tire. It still didn’t stop the corridor from stopping, the high-speed drilled car on the detour entered the opposite lane and collided with the approaching Nissan Primera and then the latter’s MAN truck.

Three citizens of the Republic of Ukraine who were driving a Nissan Primera were seriously injured in the accident. Ukrainians who came to Lithuania to buy cars had to receive long-term hospital treatment for injuries sustained after the accident.

Shot up to 14 shots

During the chase of the car driven by D. Gedgaudas, police officer A. Laužikas fired up to 14 total shots, according to patrols, the BMW driver posed a great danger on the road: he repeatedly drove into the opposite lane, crossed the horizontal horizontal lines, In some places the car speed was as high as 200 km / h.

“The accident occurred when D. Gedgaudas deliberately violated traffic regulations, disobeyed the legal requirements of police officers, and did not stop, drove almost three times faster than the speed limit for him without 2 years of driving experience, regardless of driving and weather conditions, “said Panevėžys. Donatas Skrebiškis, Chief Prosecutor of the First Prosecution Division of the District Attorney’s Office.

Gedgaud, who was prosecuted, only partially admitted the charges against him, saying he did not know that the BMW had been stolen.

The man said that on New Year’s Eve he met a man who sells cars, buys them abroad and sells them in Lithuania.

“I was looking for a job at the time, so I asked about the opportunity to work together,” said Gedgaud. And soon he received an offer from a stranger: overthrow BMW from Estonia.

D. Gedgaud went to Estonia with another stranger. And when he left, he received a mobile phone, a GPS receiver and 80 euros for fuel, a BMW was shown in the parking lot and the front door on the driver’s side was broken.

“I was told that I would write an SMS message to the number entered on the phone when I entered Lithuania,” said D. Gedgaudas in court.

He said he refueled at the first gas station and went to Lithuania.

“When I entered Lithuania, I noticed a police car behind me with the lights on. I stopped and approached the sidewalk, but the police car stopped me too,” I realized I was stopping, ” said D. Gedgaudas. “As I was accelerating during the trip, I thought that a driver who did not have the required experience could be disqualified from driving, so I increased my speed, overtaking the car in front. After that, another car, but only when there were no cars in front. I overtook the other cars by exiting the opposite lane and returning to my lane again.

As I continued driving, I caught up with the cars in the traffic jam: trucks and other cars were moving slowly. Realizing I was not going anywhere, I started to stop the car, but then I heard gunshots – the cops started shooting. I was very afraid that he might hit me, so I increased the speed even more. I did not have to overlook the cars because upon hearing the police beeps, the drivers took them to the sidewalks. As I approached the tugs, the cops fired a few more shots. I saw another police car in the front, but I passed freely through it, and then I had to drive in a ring; As soon as I passed, the police officer fired again. Immediately after the shot, the car was thrown into the opposite lane, there was no way to control or stop it. “

Then there was a collision with a car and then with a tractor.

Scared of being able to shoot

D. Gedgaudas denied that he was driving even at 200 km / h. speed – that such speed could have been developed by a police car trying to catch her: “The officers were at a disadvantage, because when a car passed, he would return to his lane and the officers would be prevented from doubling over by the car in front . While the officers waited until the obstacle had exited the car, I stopped, so it is possible that the police officers have reached about 200 km / h while chasing my BMW. speed. “

“I had no plan to run away from the officers: At first I hoped I would not lose my driver’s license after I ran away, and then I feared that the police would not shoot me,” said D. Gedgaudas.

He claimed that he had not heard police officers order the car to be stopped while driving.

“During the trip, the driver’s side window was not closed because he was unable to turn off the interior heating of the car, and there was noise through the open window, so officers were not told to stop,” the BMW driver could not confirm that he had heard 14 shots from the officer.

“I feel responsible for the accident, I did not want to hurt people, but I am not the only one to blame for the accident, the officials who shot the tire are to blame,” he explained.

According to D. Gedgaudas, the Police Act stipulates that an officer has the right to use a firearm to detain a person who is driving a vehicle that, by their actions, represents an imminent danger to the life of the officer or another person.

“Patrol A. Laužikas made the decision to use a firearm without obtaining the permission of the Panevėžys County Chief Police Commissariat guard, arbitrarily, thereby violating the provisions of the Police Patrol Activity Instructions According to Palangiškis, the officer requested permission from the guard to use the weapon, but without receiving it, he still fired arbitrarily. – The police patrol is operationally subordinate to the guard and must follow his instructions. The guard did not give the order to stop me immediately or using a firearm for arrest, therefore the use of A. Laužikas’ weapon and reckless shooting in heavy traffic conditions should be considered illegal A police officer, as a professional in his field, had to understand and give himself He realizes that a car tire could become unmanageable, leave its lane and have serious consequences. “

According to him, the specialist who investigated the cause of the accident indicated that the police lost direct stability in the direction of travel due to a sudden depressurization of the BMW left rear tire and collided with the Nissan Primera in the opposite lane.

“The specialist said that a flat tire had a significant effect on the control of the car due to depressurization, loss of stable motion, lack of control of the car; a flat tire was the main reason for the loss of stability of the car” The prosecutor said the accident was not due to speed. exceedances or other infractions of the KET

Gedgaud also noted that it had nothing to do with the BMW theft in Tallinn, that Estonian officials had abandoned the criminal case.

Patrol: shooting was necessary because it could have caused a terrible accident

At that time, police officer A. Laužikas told the court that the BMW driven by D. Gedgaud was flying at extremely high speed: “Our car developed at about 200 km / h. speed, but the BMW drove even faster. “

“The car maneuvered dangerously, posed a danger, special measures: it was not possible to use the hedgehog, so we decided it was necessary to use a weapon,” the patrol said. – I asked the guard about the use of the weapon, but I did not understand the answer about the connection, and the conditions to use the firearm were good at that time, because there were no other vehicles in front of us. My colleague and I have decided that if BMW continues to drive at high speeds, there could be an accident. “

The officer, who fired both into the air and into the tires of a crashing car, said that after a few shots he was unsure if he had been hit, as BMW continued to drive around 140-160 km / h. speed.

“I shot 5 more times and after driving we noticed that the left tire was breaking, the speed was decreasing, but the BMW driver, although he had thrown it several times, was still driving, and after another 2-3 km, he drove the opposite lane and collided with oncoming cars, “the official said.

A pre-trial investigation into the service weapon used by the police officer was initiated, but was later terminated by the Panevėžys Regional Prosecutor’s Office, stating that patrol A. Laužikas had not committed a criminal offense. D. Gedgaudas even appealed this decision to the court, but his appeals were rejected: each official is responsible for his actions and makes his own decisions based on the situation at the time.

“In evaluating the actions of police officer A. Laužikas and the impact of the blown tire on the traffic accident and its consequences, it should be noted that D. Gedgaudas disobeyed the police demand to stop the vehicle, escaped from the officers Police, significantly exceeded the speed limit, maneuvered dangerously, disobeyed warning shots, which he clearly heard, prosecutors noted. “These circumstances confirm that Mr. Gedgaudas was aware that the tires of the car he was driving could be punctured and not I could control the car at high speeds. “

According to prosecutors, the expert confirmed that the car can be controlled at low speeds. “By violating KET requirements, D. Gedgaudas caused a traffic accident, which had serious consequences,” they said.

The SCL judges shared this position: “The actions of the police officers (shots in the car tire) were the technical reason why the car lost stability due to changes in air pressure in the tire, but were the convict’s actions when driving at high speeds due to technical reasons. , was unable to control the car that had lost its stability, drove into the opposite lane and collided with other vehicles, is causally related to the consequences of a serious health injury to three people in the vehicle. “