Accused of hit-and-run: Manager ordered to pay a fine of 30,000 euros

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The magistrate described it as a “serious collision”: Almost exactly one year after a night-time cycling accident in the Südvorstadt district, she sentenced a 62-year-old car driver on Friday to a hefty fine for allegedly leaving the scene of the accident without permission after colliding with a cyclist. On one key point, however, the facts of the case turned out to be different from what had initially been assumed.

A seriously injured cyclist, 9,000 euros’ worth of damage to the car, and nearly 1,930 euros’ worth to the bicycle: Joachim P. (name changed) faced serious charges on Friday at Leipzig Magistrates’ Court. The prosecution charged the 62-year-old with negligent bodily harm and leaving the scene of an accident without authorisation. As the defendant refused to accept a summary penalty order, a full court hearing had been scheduled for Joachim P.

Defence assumes the cyclist ran a red light

It was around 1.00 am on the morning of 4 July 2025 when the man, who works in management, was driving north along August-Bebel-Straße in a company car with his wife. According to the investigation, as the Audi was turning right onto Kurt-Eisner-Straße, it collided with a cyclist approaching from the left, who subsequently suffered a serious fall. The records show that the man, now aged 31, sustained a bruised rib, grazes and considerable pain. The man, who was born in Laos, was not questioned on Friday because he had difficulty understanding the language.

According to the charge, Joachim P. is alleged to have driven through a red light and left the scene of the accident without attending to the victim. He is therefore said to have proved himself unfit to drive motor vehicles. The defendant’s defence lawyer, who did not wish to comment personally, took a different view. Furthermore, there were clear indications that his client had turned at a green light as normal and that the cyclist had been on a red, explained lawyer Jan Vorwerg after viewing a dashcam video from the car involved in the accident.

In the audio track of the recording, a woman’s panicked cries of “Shit!” can be heard, giving a sense of the drama of the incident.

A loud bang in the middle of the night

But what happened at the scene of the accident? Several first responders were interviewed on Friday. They all described a loud bang that alerted them to the dramatic situation: “At first I thought a car had rammed a bollard,” reported a witness (26) who administered first aid to the victim. The victim’s shoes had been flung far apart as a result of the force of the collision. The man himself was in pain and in shock; he appeared confused and disoriented, though at times he also said that everything was all right.

Amid the chaotic scene, the car involved in the accident was, according to witnesses, parked some distance away on Kurt-Eisner-Straße, heading towards Karl-Liebknecht-Straße. A man and a woman, presumed to be the defendant and his wife, approached the people helping the victim. The woman in particular appeared agitated and panicked: “She kept apologising and said they’d had a green light,” the witness said. Ultimately, however, the couple left and drove off before the ambulances and police arrived, another passer-by who was present explained on Friday.

Negligent bodily harm charge dropped

In light of the dashcam footage, the charge of negligent bodily harm against Joachim P. was no longer tenable, the representative of the public prosecutor’s office conceded: according to the footage, the defendant turned whilst the traffic light was green and could not have anticipated that the cyclist would approach from the left, disregarding the red light. However, P. must certainly be held responsible for leaving the scene of the accident after the collision, which demonstrated a particular lack of consideration.

Defence lawyer Jan Vorwerg disagreed: he argued that even the witness statements provided no proof that his client had actually been driving the car at all, rather than, for example, his wife. Even if one were to assume a hit-and-run offence, this was not a ‘textbook case’, because it had been proven that the car had stopped and Joachim P. had got out to ensure that the cyclist was being helped.

Vorwerg, who also pointed out that his client had been driving without incident for a year, moved for an acquittal, whilst the prosecution sought a fine of 90 daily rates at 300 euros each (27,000 euros) plus a six-month driving ban.

Judge: ‘You should have known better’

The court acquitted Joachim P. of causing bodily harm through negligence, but imposed a fine of 100 daily rates of 300 euros each (30,000 euros) for leaving the scene of an accident without authorisation and ordered a driving ban of at least nine months.

Joachim P. was known to be a regular user of his employer’s company car. Furthermore, based on his communications with the insurance company and the police, there was sufficient evidence to suggest that he was behind the wheel himself at the time of the collision, said Magistrate Sandra Maiwald.

The 62-year-old’s lack of any previous criminal record was held in his favour. However, this was offset by the severe force of the collision with the cyclist, which did not prevent Joachim P. from leaving the scene of the accident: “That constitutes a serious breach of a motorist’s duties,” said the judge. A person of his educational background, in particular, should have known better and should own up to his mistakes, the judge told the defendant. He has one week in which to appeal against the judgement.