The Slovenian truck driver was punished with a horrendous fine for manipulating the tachograph records. Such a fine would lead to bankruptcy more than one transport company.
At the beginning of this month, near the Danish city of Karlsrunde, the police inspected a truck registered in Slovenia. The officers quickly discovered that the tachograph installed in the vehicle registered only the route from the exit of the E-20 motorway to the car park where the vehicle was located, reports the Swedish transport portal tidningenproffs.se. This already made the policemen suspicious of manipulation, especially since the driver strongly resisted a more thorough inspection.
The officers also suspected that the Slovenian could carry illegal substances, so they called a patrol with tracking dogs. One of them found a device near the truck that was used to manipulate the tachograph. The driver threw the device away when he saw the approaching police. More detailed control allowed to locate the rest of the system in the truck.
The whole system used for manipulation was so sophisticated that the Danish police are now planning to train their agents on it.
The new ways of cheating show that we need to develop our own skills so that we can deal with criminals and prevent this type of fraud,” said Commissioner Henrik Fobian from Tungvognscenter Öst.
The driver of the truck was fined 535 thousand Danish crowns or about 71,650 euros. The vehicle was confiscated until the fine was paid. The trucker has also been banned from driving in Denmark.
Editor’s comment
The story of a Slovenian driver shows that it is not worth cheating. Not only was the fine very high, but by committing such practices, the carrier was risking bankruptcy and of his own company and what’s more important, human life.