Police warn against illegal car racing in Malaga

A man drives a 400 CV Mustang out of control and ends up crashing it at full speed into several cars.

This is the reality of a problem Malaga police have with illegal car racing. As the Mustang crashed, several spectators had to jump out of the way to avoid being hit by the car.

There are no fences, nor a safety distance that separates the public from the competing vehicles that accelerate and skid along a distance of five hundred metres.

On this night, everyone is lucky. There are no injuries, but the driver of the Mustang could be charged with reckless driving and endangering lives.

These dangerous meetups are organised through WhatsApp, Telegram and closed groups and are held every Friday night between 11.30 and 1 am in the morning.  There are between fifty and sixty participants including drivers and spectators.

The three most popular areas for the car runs are the Trevenez Industrial Estate, the Fairgrounds and the vicinity of the Trade Fairs and Congress Palace. Other locations include the BP petrol station in Cartama and the car park of the El Ingenio shopping centre in Velez Malaga.

The people come from far and wide, often from places outside Malaga like Granada and Cadiz and those who are driving often have modified cars. Especially favoured are old BMWs.

The local police of Malaga maintain preventative surveillance through the Investigation and Protection Group (GIP) to put a stop to illegal races with intense monitoring of social networks where the drivers arrange meetings and post pictures of their cars.