18-year-old young woman dies in Mechelen hit-and-run, driver takes his own life

A car crashed into 2 young pedestrians near the Nekkerhal In Mechelen at around 8.20pm yesterday. One of the pedestrians died in the incident. Initial police findings show that the driver was driving too fast. The driver then proceeded to take his own the life.The victims are 2 women aged 18 and 19 from Limburg Province. ‘The 18-year-old woman from Beringen died despite attempts at resuscitation by a medical team at the scene. Her 19-year-old friend was taken to hospital with serious injuries,’ Dirk Van de Sande, local police spokesperson, says.

The two girls were riding on an electric scooter; the driver crashed into them from behind. At this spot there is no separate cycle lane along the road.

Hit-and-run and excessive speed

Camera images allowed the car and driver to be identified: a 36-year-old man from Keerbergen (Flemish Brabant). Initial findings by a traffic expert show that the man was speeding. It is not clear whether he was under the influence of alcohol or drugs. At this spot drivers can do 50 kilometres per hour.

The driver took his own life an hour and a half after the accident before he could be questioned or arrested.