Mystery of driverless car that fell four meters into Madrid tunnel resolved

Mystery solved. The owner of an apparently driverless car that was found crashed in a Madrid tunnel in the early hours of Sunday morning is Alejandro G. P., a 28-year-old from Sabadell, Barcelona.

When firefighters and police arrived at the scene of the accident, close to the capital’s Atocha railway station, they found that the vehicle had veered off the road and fallen four meters into a tunnel. But there was no driver or passengers to be seen.

First indications suggested the occupants fled the accident and that they may have been under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and wished to avoid police questioning

First indications suggested the occupants fled the accident and that they may have been under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and wished to avoid police questioning. The vehicle had not been reported stolen.

On Monday, Alejandro G. P. gave his side of the story to the police, explaining that that he had been in a nightclub with his girlfriend, which they left after 6am. He was in the passenger seat, he explained, while his girlfriend took the wheel.

When they reached the Mariano de Cavia square, the woman lost control of the Renault Clio, which plunged off the side of the road, crashing into the tunnel. The next thing the man said he remembered was his girlfriend being very nervous, while he had pains in his chest and began suffering a panic attack. “So we decided to leave the car there and take a cab to a hospital for treatment,” he told the police.

They then caught a taxi, leaving the scene of the accident, and headed to their hotel, in Alcalá de Henares, where they collected their identity documents and went for treatment for their injuries in a local hospital.

The pair will now be investigated on suspicion of traffic offenses.

The authorities also want to talk to the girlfriend of the man, the alleged driver, Luz Heydi V. P., who, according to her partner, is currently on a trip to Valencia.

Sources confirmed that the owner of the vehicle appeared voluntarily at the police station, after having heard “in the media” that his car had been involved in an accident. Alejandro G. P. turned 28 on Saturday, according to the same sources.

English version by Simon Hunter.