Drunken axe-man arrested after dramatic car chase
A 45-year-old man was arrested early Wednesday morning after attacking another man with an axe and then leading police on a wild car chase in northern Sweden.
Earlier on Tuesday evening the axe-wielding man assaulted another man in the town of Skellefteå, but police were unable to catch up with him before he fled the scene.
Shortly after midnight, tips from the public helped put police back on the trail of the man, who was by then driving on Route 363 toward Umeå, about 100 kilometres south of where the attack took place.
When police first tried to stop him, the man barreled ahead, forcing a police officer to dive out of the way to avoid being hit by the speeding vehicle.
On the outskirts of Umeå, police covered the road strip of metal spikes in a second attempt to stop the axe-man.
Despite having all four of his car’s tyres punctured, the man continued driving for an additional five kilometres before police finally forced the vehicle off the road.
The 45-year-old man, who was highly inebriated, lashed out violently at officers as they made the arrest. He was then taken to a hospital for detoxification.
“We think he was under the influence of both alcohol and some pills, and we wanted to make sure that he wasn’t going to feel too ill,” said Peter Jonsson of the Västerbotton police to the TT news agency.
The axe-man’s adventures have resulted in a slew of charges included assault, attempted murder, driving while intoxicated, and reckless driving, according to the Piteå-Tidningen newspaper.
The victim was also taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Police are still looking for a motive in the attack.
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Earlier on Tuesday evening the axe-wielding man assaulted another man in the town of Skellefteå, but police were unable to catch up with him before he fled the scene.
Shortly after midnight, tips from the public helped put police back on the trail of the man, who was by then driving on Route 363 toward Umeå, about 100 kilometres south of where the attack took place.
When police first tried to stop him, the man barreled ahead, forcing a police officer to dive out of the way to avoid being hit by the speeding vehicle.
On the outskirts of Umeå, police covered the road strip of metal spikes in a second attempt to stop the axe-man.
Despite having all four of his car’s tyres punctured, the man continued driving for an additional five kilometres before police finally forced the vehicle off the road.
The 45-year-old man, who was highly inebriated, lashed out violently at officers as they made the arrest. He was then taken to a hospital for detoxification.
“We think he was under the influence of both alcohol and some pills, and we wanted to make sure that he wasn’t going to feel too ill,” said Peter Jonsson of the Västerbotton police to the TT news agency.
The axe-man’s adventures have resulted in a slew of charges included assault, attempted murder, driving while intoxicated, and reckless driving, according to the Piteå-Tidningen newspaper.
The victim was also taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Police are still looking for a motive in the attack.
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