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Swedish man dead in US airport car crash

Clara Guibourg
Clara Guibourg - [email protected]
Swedish man dead in US airport car crash

A Swedish man is believed to have died in a runway car crash, in an accident that occurred at Tracy Municipal Airport in California on Thursday.

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The Swede, a 24-year-old man, was a flight school student, as were the car's three other passengers, who all survived the crash.

Driving around on the airport runway, the driver lost control of his BMW.

The car crashed through a fence, and likely rolled over at least once before plunging straight into the canal that runs perpendicular to the end of the runway.

“Three people were able to escape from the canal and one occupant is still missing,” said Tracy police sergeant Luis Mejia to TV station CBS.

The three rescued men were pulled from the water, according to dispatch records.

The victim however, was trapped in the backseat, reported local newspaper Tracy Press.

"We suspect that his body has been carried away by the strong current. We can't find him," said Tracy police sergeant Tony Sheneman to newspaper Aftonbladet.

The three other passengers were also Swedes. The driver, a man in his thirties, is now suspected of manslaughter, and Tracy police have taken a blood test from him to judge whether or not alcohol was involved in the crash.

"He's is custody," confirmed Camilla Åkesson Lindblom, press secretary at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, to Aftonbladet.

The suspect risks up to three years in prison.

"They were driving at high speed on the runway. The driver told me that he'd lift his foot from the pedal, but the car continued straight ahead, down into the canal," said sergeant Tony Sheneman to Aftonbladet.

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