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CRIME

Store detective jumps on car to save leather jacket

Having possibly seen one too many action movies, a middle-aged German store detective went beyond the call of duty on Saturday when he jumped on the bonnet of a getaway car to prevent the theft of a leather jacket.

Published: 2 April 2012 17:25 CEST
Store detective jumps on car to save leather jacket
A stuntman demonstrates a car bonnet stunt. Photo: DPA

Berlin security guard Peter J. spotted two shoplifters stealing a black leather jacket from the “14 oz Outlet” designer clothes store in a trendy shopping district in the centre of Berlin.

Springing into action, the 51-year-old chased the pair outside and stood in front of their car, a BMW Coupé, to block their escape.

“The driver drove into his leg,” a police spokesman told newspaper Bild. “But he just stood there.”

The thieves finally managed to set off, but Peter J., taking his cue straight from Hollywood, flung himself onto the car’s bonnet and clung there for what witnesses said was “more than 50 metres”.

At this point, the would-be shoplifters, knowing they were no match for this heroic store detective, dropped the jacket out of the window. Then Peter J, considering that his duty was done, calmly dismounted, brushed himself off and returned the jacket to the shop.

The thieves were able to flee unidentified.

The Local/bk

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BERLIN

Tesla’s factory near Berlin gets approval for extension despite protests

Tesla has confirmed its plans to extend its production site outside Berlin had been approved, overcoming opposition from residents and environmental activists.

Published: 17 May 2024 08:54 CEST
Tesla's factory near Berlin gets approval for extension despite protests

The US electric car manufacturer said on Thursday it was “extremely pleased” that local officials in the town of Grünheide, where the factory is located, had voted to approve the extension.

Tesla opened the plant – its only production location in Europe – in 2022 at the end of a tumultuous two-year approval and construction process.

The carmaker had to clear a series of administrative and legal hurdles before production could begin at the site, including complaints from locals about the site’s environmental impact.

READ ALSO: Why is Tesla’s expansion near Berlin so controversial?

Plans to double capacity to produce a million cars a year at the site, which employs some 12,000 people, were announced in 2023.

The plant, which already occupies around 300 hectares (740 acres), was set to be expanded by a further 170 hectares.

But Tesla had to scale back its ambitions to grow the already massive site after locals opposed the plan in a non-binding poll.

The entrance to the Tesla factory in Brandenburg.

The entrance to the Tesla factory in Brandenburg. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Lutz Deckwerth

Their concerns included deforestation required for the expansion, the plant’s high water consumption, and an increase in road traffic in the area.

In the new proposal, Tesla has scrapped plans for logistics and storage centres and on-site employee facilities, while leaving more of the surrounding forest standing.

Thursday’s council vote in Grünheide drew strong interest from residents and was picketed by protestors opposing the extension, according to German media.

Protests against the plant have increased since February, and in March the plant was forced to halt production following a suspected arson attack on nearby power lines claimed by a far-left group.

Activists have also built makeshift treehouses in the woodland around the factory to block the expansion, and environmentalists gathered earlier this month in their hundreds at the factory to protest the enlargement plans.

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