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Ten kilometers traveled in the space of six minutes.
This gives an average speed of 100km/h.
This is the pace at which a chase took place, in the night from Tuesday to Wednesday, in Nantes and then in its surroundings.
This ended, around 4 a.m., after the vehicle left the road, refusing to obey the orders of the police.
The accident, which was fatal for the driver and his passenger, occurred on a winding road located in the town of Saint-Herblain.
They are two young men of 21 from Morbihan.
One lived in the commune of Béganne and the other in La Roche-Bernard.
Their vehicle hit a tree on the way out of a bend while driving at high speed.
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The police, who were chasing them in a screen-printed vehicle, arrived shortly after at the scene of the tragedy and could only note their deaths.
According to the first elements of the investigation, which is only beginning, the responsibility of the police officers in this tragedy is not engaged.
“There is nothing to determine a danger to the life of others.
No element calls into question the action of the police services
, ”said Renaud Gaudeul, the public prosecutor of Nantes, during a press conference this Wednesday evening.
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Toxicological analyzes
Whether it be the audio tapes recorded at the time of the chase, the findings on the police vehicle or the examinations of the official who drove it, nothing suggests a fault.
"The IGPN
(General Inspectorate of the National Police, editor's note)
is not seized at this stage of the investigation"
, indicated Renaud Gaudeul.
Investigations still remain to be carried out.
They mainly concern the fleeing vehicle and its occupants:
“We do not know why these two individuals, who lived in Morbihan, were in Nantes.
We also do not know the reason for their refusal to comply.
Many refusals to comply
In 2022, there were 256 refusals to comply in the Nantes conurbation, said the public prosecutor of Nantes.
A figure which rises to 331 in the police zone of the whole of Loire-Atlantique.
"It's almost one a day," he said.
Data that does not take into account refusals to comply in the gendarmerie zone which covers 60% of the departmental territory.
The autopsies of the victims are to be performed Thursday and Friday.
“Full toxicological analyzes will be carried out.
Their results can take several days”
, underlined the prosecutor who admits that the investigators have
“a few leads”
but absolutely
“nothing to verify”
this Wednesday evening, less than 24 hours after the facts.
He still excludes the presence of a large quantity of drugs in the accident car because no tangible trace was found near the place of the shock.
The only certainties: the two individuals were unknown to the justice services and the driver did indeed hold a driving license.
“He was the owner of the vehicle even if he had not done the administrative procedures”
, details the prosecutor.
“Hesitant” driving
During his presentation of the investigation, Renaud Gaudeul returned to the start of the chase.
As usual, the crew of three police officers patrolled the streets of Nantes overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday.
Around 3:40 am, near Place Auriol located in the Dervallières district of Nantes, they saw a vehicle - a Renault Mégane registered in Morbihan - with two
"particularly young" people
on board.
Intrigued, the police want to carry out a check.
Except that the offending car starts at
“a very slow pace”
and with a
“hesitant driving”
, according to the police account.
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The latter then decide to activate their flashing light and their two-tone siren.
Despite these devices, the public prosecutor explains that there was
"no reaction"
from the driver who continued to drive
"at low speed"
.
Everything then accelerated when the vehicle involved arrived at the Armor roundabout which gives access to the four lanes leading to Vannes and Saint-Nazaire.
“There was a very big acceleration with speeds above 140km / h”
, traces the prosecutor.
The course on the fast lane did not last long since the driver quickly took an exit.
He then crossed downtown Sautron
“at speeds over 100km/h”
before entering the rue de la Syonnière in Saint-Herblain, a small winding and wooded road.
“The policeman who knew the place said he slowed down and lowered his speed to 80km / h which remains important given the topography
, describes Renaud Gaudeul.
Consequence: the police officers would have lost the vision of the vehicle which preceded them in the curves and would therefore not have attended the fatal exit from the road.
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