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Munich (dpa / lby) - In the Corona year 2020, the police in Bavaria registered significantly more illegal car races.
According to the Ministry of the Interior in response to a request from the SPD parliamentary group in the state parliament, 560 prohibited races with 771 participants across Bavaria were noticed.
That is an increase of around 90 percent compared to 2019, when 294 car races and 468 participants were statistically significant.
But not only the number of prohibited races has increased massively, according to the information.
The number of fatalities (7) and injuries (77) also skyrocketed last year.
In 2019, the police recorded only one death and 29 injured as a result of illegal races through the Free State.
“There are more and more illegal car races in Bavaria.
The number of grossly inconsiderate speeding competitors is increasing significantly, ”said Landtag Vice President Markus Rinderspacher (SPD).
Because of the increasing number of victims, the courts would have to make consistent use of the existing range of punishments to deter offenders.
"Because since 2017 these races are no longer a mere administrative offense, they are punishable."
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Forbidden car races can face a prison sentence of up to two years or a fine.
In 2019, 55 people were convicted, five acquitted and the proceedings were dropped in 17 cases.
No evaluations are yet available for 2020.
The illegal car races are almost exclusively driven by young men, they are mostly younger than 30 years and drive cars with high horsepower.
The police have a theory to explain the increase: "In the pandemic year 2020, familiar and popular leisure activities for young people were impossible or at least made more difficult," said a spokeswoman for the Upper Bavaria North police.
Participation in illegal car races has been a criminal offense in Germany since 2017.
This also includes so-called individual races, in which inconsiderate drivers want to achieve the highest possible speeds.
The Bavarian police have since intensified the relevant controls.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210227-99-615120 / 2