To confuse the police, he put on a license plate from another vehicle. He got caught because he was speeding
Date published 08/04/2024
It all started when the driver of an Opel Insignia exceeded the speed limit in a built-up area. The 50-year-old man stopped for inspection was sober, but the police revealed a number of irregularities, including “misplaced” license plates from another vehicle. From October 1, 2023, such an act is treated as a crime.
On Saturday afternoon, Radzyń traffic policemen, while on duty, stopped the driver of an Opel Insignia for a road check, who exceeded the speed limit in a built-up area. During the activities, the police had no objections to the driver’s sobriety, but they appeared during the vehicle inspection. It turned out that the Opel had license plates from another car. In turn, the car the 50-year-old was driving was not approved for traffic and did not have compulsory insurance.
The case will now go to court. A resident of the Kąkolewnica commune admitted in a conversation with the police that he had installed license plates from another car on his car because he wanted to “bring the Opel back from the mechanic after the repairs were completed.”
It is highly probable that the 50-year-old thought that he would not encounter a police patrol, but he also did not follow changes in the law. Pursuant to the provisions of the Penal Code, which entered into force on October 1, 2023, the theft of license plates and their transfer from another vehicle has become a crime. Before this date, such acts were treated as misdemeanors, which meant fewer legal consequences. However, the new regulations have significantly tightened sanctions against people committing such acts.
Article 306c of the Penal Code states:
§ 1. Whoever confiscates or alters the registration plate of a motor vehicle, enabling the vehicle to be admitted to traffic in the territory of the Republic of Poland, or who counterfeits or alters it for the purpose of using it as an authentic registration plate, shall be subject to the penalty of imprisonment from 3 months to 5 years.
§ 2. The same penalty shall apply to anyone who uses a registration plate of a motor vehicle that is not assigned to the vehicle on which it is placed, or uses a counterfeit or forged registration plate of a motor vehicle as an authentic one.
Assistant Commissioner Piotr Mucha
