Police in the Romanian region of Maramureș fired as many as 20 gunshots in order to recover a lorry that had been stolen and driven as far as 100 kilometres.
The truck was reportedly stolen at around 11pm on Christmas Day. Police officers soon caught up with the vehicle, which was headed for the city of Baia Mare.
According to reports in the Romanian press, the police initially tried to stop the lorry in Baia Sprie, only for the driver to ignore them and continue on the road to Baia Mare.
Eventually, officers decided to shoot the lorry’s tires in order to end the chase and apprehend the thief. During the climax of the police pursuit, the truck even tried to ram through a police blockade. This was originally reported by eye-witnesses and later confirmed by the police.
After the lorry had been immobilised, the driver ran into a nearby field before eventually being arrested.
The police also found that the thief had been under the influence of alcohol. He was immediately detained and will soon face charges.