This is the incredible moment a frustrated mayor drives an armoured vehicle over a MERCEDES – for parking in a cycle lane.
Arturas Zuokas, 43, took the drastic action after becoming infuriated with motorists parking their luxury cars illegally around the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius.
The flamboyant politician decided to take the novel approach of fighting illegally parked cars by driving over them in a Russian tank.
He said: ”I wanted to send a clear message that people with big and expensive cars can’t park wherever they feel like and ignore the rights of pedestrians and bike riders.
”It shows a lack of respect and won’t be tolerated. Of course, you have to have a sense of humour in my line of work and I thought this would be a way of drawing attention to the fact that the city intends to be proactive in its fight against illegal parking.”
The shocked owner of the Mercedes was photographed exiting a shop to find his German saloon destroyed by the smartly dressed civic leader.
The car was later crushed.
Now that’s an EXTREME way to get people to stop feeling like they are better than everyone else.
Way to go!!!!
Il peut venir à Paris ce maire, il y a de quoi faire !
YEAH WAY TO GO MAN!!!! #Tank #Vilnus Come to Mexico, Plenty of work here too!!!
I wish there was plenty of work in Mexico. I could probably sleep with my windows open then.
You should know that the net number of new people (people that aren’t coming BACK to the US) coming in from the south into the US, is actually zero.
Stop whining and fix your economy.
Are you saying that all of the Latin Americans in the US were born here or are just replacing US citizens? That seems very wrong.
Nice…but does parking in a bike lane give the govt the right to total your car?!? Vigilante justice by elected official if you ask me. (Now, if this were a publicity stunt I might fell otherwise.) 😐
Yeah, he was acting just like a Tea Party member.
It was a publicity stunt. They do not have a full article above. Search it on google for the rest of it.
I was about to call BS (but I forgot the number)
GOOD FIND!
We need to invent the police. Whatever its pros and cons, this sort of action is only necessary because the police have not yet been invented.
invented??
You mean “we have to invent proper salaries for police,” because there are PLENTY of police in Vilnius, and PLENTY that will gladly take the equivalent of $40-50 to forget all about your ticket.
Of course, in america, police do not take bribes…
This made me lol. The police don’t take small bribes in the US is what you mean good sir
not to be a stickler, but that is an APC (armored personnel carrier) not a tank. for the sake of accuracy.
Thats a Mercedes Benz, not a car- For the sake of accuracy. 🙂
So what exactly is a Mercedes Benz then? What does it do if it’s not a car/automobile? Does it fly and shit gold?
Mine used to fly and shit gold, but then I got the turn signal fixed and that stopped happening.
I thought they shit rainbows when they flew.
no.. it’s Mercedes, just Mercedes.
To be a stickler, it’s a BRC-80, 8×8.
Or you could just tow it, no?
The article closes with “The car was later crushed.” Shouldn’t that be “The car was later crushed again”? Seems like the mayor did a pretty good job of crushing it the first time.
I once watched a fire engine do something similar to a Honda Accord parked in a fire lane in front of a burning building. The result? A Honda Accordion.
Hey guys, let’s all argue semantics.
It gives the illusion of intelligence without the burden of having to say something meaningful.
“It gives the illusion of intelligence without the burden of having to say something meaningful.” Oh, the irony!
but i mean…..what else do you say??
Hey guys, lets not take a joke.
Cause sarcasm is the true way to demonstrate smarts!
oh… wait…
…”having to say something meaningful.” Said Terry as his head exploded from an overdose of irony, explaining the fact that he is not here berating anyone anymore.
both the driver of the mercedes and the mayor are total douchebags
The ending of this story is a lie, the mayor bought the car specifically for this video.
probably. that was what I was thinking..
i wanted to run over some punks BMW for parking in a disabled parking space without a tag, but this works too, way to go
Um,… did anyone else notice that the guy above said “We need to invent the police” ?
Seems odd. While it makes a heck of a statement, I agree that towing may have been a better option.
I can’t help but wonder what innovative lawsuit came from evidence from the web (like right here). Shows intentional destruction by a non-law enforcement person. Of course, I suppose that in Vilnius the mayor may be within his rights. In California he would be arrested. The insurance company would ‘own’ that mayor.
Still, it IS cool to see a Mercedes totaled.
and natedog is dead
Just do what everyone else does. Pass a law that permits tow truck drivers to haul away any illegally parked cars, impound them, and charge extortionate rates to release them back to the owner. Oh, and grant them immunity for any damages incurred while towing the car.
Soon you’ll have what I have in my hometown: Tow trucks circling downtown like sharks, just waiting for you to give them the slightest excuse.
And lucky for your hometown, there are people willing to break the law and fund municipal projects! Don’t park like a jerk and you won’t get ticketed or towed!
I sincerely hope you die slowly in a fire with a piece of rebar shoved up your ass, you high horse riding heavy handed asshat.
Kisses!
Why is it your comment has me picturing you white-knuckling the wheel, eyes darting from side to side while a tow truck waits just around the corner, revving the engine?
That really leaves the door open for tow truck drivers to just start carting away vehicles that may be legally parked just to rape the driver for fees. How would I be able to PROVE that I was parked legally when towed? I think it’s better to have the police order the towing of the vehicles that to leave it to the judgment of a bunch of hillbilly tow truck drivers.
I would normally think that is a bit extreme, but with the attitudes I have seen displayed by merc owners before, I think this is not an unreasonable response.
On CNN the ending to this was different. They ended with a note that said the care was specifically bought for this video. the video is on youtube.
Drive Russian Tank over consumerist German sedan ? Spirit of Communism Lives. Anew !
i like the naivete of american citizens that, think if, they stay within the law they will be treated respectfully by the law & gov’t. their ignorance is so cute. …and american police don’t need bribes anymore. they have the war on drugs to fund their personal prosperity.
Saw someone run a red light behind a cop, in front of another cop today. Apparently it wasn’t worth either cop’s time. Who needs bribes, when you just don’t care about your job?
I don’t know why US citizens would think they will be treated respectfully by their law and gov’t here more than elsewhere. Certainly there doesn’t seem to be overwhelming evidence that we have been treated well here in the past. None the less, rule of law at least counts for something here.
That’s so friggen awesome! The mayor of my city should buy himself a Russian tank!
Needs a heavier tank. I want to see a tinfoil cutout that used to be an engine block.
Needs more T-90 less APC.
I read in the guardian that they bought the car specifically for this stunt. It wasn’t some guy’s car.
“Luxury Car”
That’s a mini cab at best.
haha. crazy but effective solution.
Surely Mr President should have been put on a charge of criminal damage, and the “victim” compensated?
Also I wonder how parking in a cycle lane affects pedestrians…
Or can I smash up (with immunity) someone’s car just because they repeatedly park outside my home.
Sure, the guy made a point, but he’s an eejut.