A police patrol wanted to pull the woman out of traffic, but she accelerated – her passenger had to pay with her life.

A 42-year-old woman died in a serious accident in Düsseldorf early Sunday morning. She was sitting in a drunk driver’s car when it veered off the road and crashed into several trees.

Shortly before, a police patrol had noticed the couple’s Toyota. At around 5 a.m., the officers wanted to stop the car, but the 30-year-olds at the wheel initially drove on, seemingly unfazed, and ignored all of the police officers’ signals to stop.

Then she finally stopped with her hazard lights on, the officers said. But only briefly: Suddenly the woman pressed the accelerator and sped off.

The woman raced north along the Rhine from the old town at high speed – the police say it was significantly too fast. Several traffic lights showed the police that they were red, but the woman just kept driving. Her escape was so rapid that the patrol car temporarily lost sight of the Toyota.

Shortly afterwards, the driver lost control. The force of the collision left the 42-year-old passenger so badly injured that she died at the scene of the accident. All attempts to resuscitate her failed.

The 30-year-old driver suffered serious injuries and was taken to hospital for inpatient treatment. According to the police, there were indications of drug and alcohol consumption. A breathalyzer test confirmed the initial suspicion.

The traffic accident investigation team of the Düsseldorf police secured the evidence of the accident and the investigation into the exact circumstances is ongoing. According to the current status of the investigation, the driver did not have a valid driving license.