This happened February 5th 2000 (or thereabouts) at AllHallows Multi-story car park in Bedford, England.

A lady parked her car on the top floor of All Hallows multi-storey car park in Bedford, England. As she walked out of the car park, she dropped her car keys without noticing. Two regular car thieves who were lurking there did notice, picked them up, and let themselves into the car and drove off at speed.

Although the thieves had plenty of experience of driving stolen cars, these had all been equipped with manual gearboxes. This car, however, was automatic.

With the (to the driver) unusual pedal arrangement of brake and throttle, but no clutch,, the thief accelerated using his right foot on the throttle, and with his left foot over the brake pedal ready for use.

Despite his best intentions of using his left foot to brake, several years of past experience and training took over as he approached the wall of the car park. Instinctively he pressed his right foot hard to the floor to brake, the same right foot that was still hovering over the throttle.

Instead of braking sharply, the car accelerated hard. It was still accelerating as it crashed through the car park wall and emerged on the otehr side.

Five floors below, the car's legal owner had just emerged from the car park stairwell. Alerted by the loud bang above her of metal against brickwork, she was just in time to see her own car still accelerating, although by now powered only by the forces of gravity, as the thieves made their faster-than-planned getaway. The car landed on its roof five floors below the point at which they had departed the car park, and the two joy riders were killed instantly.

I have it on good authority that there was a loud cheer at the local police station when the identities of the two joy riders became known. Coincidentally, Bedford's car-crime figures dropped almost as fast as the stolen car as two sets of aberrant genes were simultaneously removed from the gene pool.

This was all reported in the 'Birmingam Evening Post' of 5 Feb 2000, and in 'Bedfordshire on Sunday' (bedfordshire-news.co.uk) and 'Bedford Times and Citizen (www.bedfordtoday.co.uk)

Submitted on 12/02/2010

Submitted by: John Jarman
Reference: Bimingham Evening Mail 5 February 2000

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Bruce said:
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Although one could argue that the passenger was a hurt bystander I think the fact that he was an accomplice in the theft negates that argument. And if you're going to steal a car and hot-rod it out of a garage you better know darned well how to operate it properly. Thanks, John!

Candi said:
Definitely Keep: Darwin Award
That's the problem with crooks; they're so eager to get away they lose their heads. Thanks, John!

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