Police Chase on E17 Ends in Crash, Citizen Heroics Lead to 6 Arrests
A high-speed police chase on the E17 highway in West Flanders ended spectacularly on Saturday evening when a fleeing Volkswagen Golf GTI flipped onto its roof after crashing into an innocent couple’s car. Six French nationals were arrested, with five of them captured thanks to a dramatic intervention by ordinary citizens who blocked their getaway vehicle.
According to the West Flanders public prosecutor’s office, the driver — a 20-year-old French man residing in Moeskroen (Mouscron), Belgium — faces charges of armed resistance, malicious obstruction of traffic, and driving without a license. He is expected to appear before an investigating judge in Kortrijk, who will decide on pretrial detention.
The Chase
The incident began at approximately 18:47 on Saturday when federal highway police spotted a Volkswagen Golf GTI with French license plates speeding between Deerlijk and Waregem on the E17. When officers attempted an intercept, the driver fled at extreme speed.
Police quickly decided to break off the pursuit due to the reckless driving, but the damage was already done. Near the Nazareth/De Pinte parking area, the Golf collided with another vehicle. Undeterred, the driver continued toward Ghent, executed a U-turn via several exits, and re-entered the E17 heading toward France.
The Crash
As the Golf exited the highway at the De Vlecht complex in Waregem, the driver took the curve at excessive speed and crashed into a Volkswagen ID.4 carrying an unsuspecting couple. The impact flipped the Golf onto its roof in the median strip. Both occupants of the ID.4 suffered minor injuries.
Miraculously, the occupants of the Golf — between four and six people — clambered out of the wreckage and fled on foot toward a nearby industrial zone.
Citizen Intervention
What happened next turned an already dramatic chase into a story of civic bravery. Minutes after the crash, a BMW with German license plates arrived at the industrial zone, honking repeatedly. Three suspects jumped in, but with a driver and two passengers already inside, one man was forced into the trunk.
Bystanders quickly realized what was happening. “I think at one point there were about ten of us,” an eyewitness told Het Laatste Nieuws. “We blocked their escape route, but when they started threatening us with their BMW, we wisely made way.”
The citizens yielded, but fate intervened: traffic lights on the Anzegemseweg were red, trapping the BMW behind a line of waiting cars. When police from local zone Mira arrived, citizens honked to alert them. Officers drew their weapons, surrounded the BMW, and arrested all six occupants — five inside and one in the trunk.
A large sum of cash was reportedly found in the BMW, while children’s books were discovered in the crashed Golf. The five passengers were released after questioning.
Legal Consequences
The 20-year-old driver, who did not possess a driver’s license and had a prior conviction for the same offense, now faces serious charges under Belgian law. “Armed resistance” carries significant prison sentences, while malicious obstruction of traffic reflects the extreme danger he posed to the public.
The incident highlights ongoing challenges with cross-border crime on the E17 corridor, a major route connecting France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Previous similar incidents involving French drivers fleeing police in the same region suggest this is a persistent law enforcement issue.
What’s Next
The investigating judge in Kortrijk will determine whether the driver will be held in pretrial detention. The five other French nationals were released after questioning, suggesting they may have been passengers rather than active participants in the chase. For the innocent couple whose vehicle was struck, the physical injuries may heal, but the trauma of being caught in the middle of a police chase at high speed will likely linger.
As one eyewitness who helped block the getaway car reflected: “Every passerby who helped felt the adrenaline pumping through their bodies. Ultimately, you do take a certain risk, but we made a small contribution to a story that, without our intervention, might have ended with even more victims.”