As of: January 23, 2024, 4:30 p.m
By: Sebastian Oppenheimer
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An unknown person has already cut down twelve speed cameras in Italy.
The media dubs him “Fleximan” – he is hailed as a hero in many places on social media.
Not every driver is interested in the fact that speed limits in road traffic are generally intended to increase traffic safety.
Time and again, speed traps attract the ire of incorrigible speeders: Speed cameras are sometimes parked, overturned or even blown up.
Sometimes a whole wave of violence against speed measuring systems is unleashed - as was the case in Toronto, Canada, some time ago.
In northern Italy, too, speed cameras are now being “turned off” in large numbers.
The perpetrator is celebrated in many places on social media for his actions.
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Italian police are hunting “Fleximan”: There may be several perpetrators
“Fleximan” is what the Italian media has dubbed a previously unknown figure who has been making headlines in the country for months.
However, it is not yet certain whether it is really a single person - there may also be several perpetrators who are tampering with the speed cameras.
Presumably with an angle grinder (also called “Flex”), the man who is now being hunted by the police saws down rows of masts on which speed traps are attached.
According to media reports, the perpetrator apparently ensures that the systems themselves remain as undamaged as possible and that “only” the mast is sawn off.
In pictures of the “folded” systems you can sometimes see that, for example, the cables that run through the mast are still intact.
Twelve speed camera systems were “turned down” – which now threatens the perpetrator
According to the South Tyrolean portal
stol.it,
the perpetrator has already disabled 12 speed cameras.
According to the report, “Fleximan” could face up to two years in prison if convicted.
Celebrated “Fleximan”: “The hero we deserve and need”
The articles about the speed camera attacks in northern Italy are widely commented on on social media.
For example , under a
Corriere della Sera
post on Facebook about “Fleximan,” someone wrote: “The hero we deserve and need!”
Another says: "My hero used to be Superman, now it's just Fleximan." In addition to countless thanks and congratulations to the radar fall sawyer, there is also occasional criticism: not only of the actions of "Fleximan", but also of those , which stylize the perpetrator (or perpetrators) as a hero.
Users repeatedly point out how dangerous excessive speed is in traffic.
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“Fleximan” is what the Italian media has dubbed an unknown man who cuts through rows of speed traps.
(Symbolic image) © Pond5 Images/Imago
Mayor of a municipality defends speed traps: “they serve traffic safety”
“Fleximan” also struck in Martignana di Po.
As Alexander Gozzi, mayor of the northern Italian municipality, emphasized according to
Il Mattino
and
stol.it
, the income from speed traps is by no means a means of filling empty coffers - it serves road safety.
Drivers who want to protect themselves against speed cameras have a number of options - but many of them are illegal, at least in Germany.
Speed camera warning apps, for example, may not be used by the driver or passenger.
The simplest solution to avoid getting a fine for speeding is still to simply stick to the speed limit.