Berlin police have issued a warning after coming across a novel solution to the problem of packing furniture items into the car. Officers were puzzled to spot a hand emerging from the trunk - holding down the tailgate.
Image: Twitter/Polizei Berlin
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Police in Berlin were far from impressed by one shopper's innovative approach to the puzzle of packing bulky furniture into his family car.
The 47-year-old, who had bought a cupboard, found the item was just a little too big to fit in his modestly sized Opel Zafira. Stumped for solutions, he asked his son to crawl into the trunk, holding onto the cupboard between his legs and keeping the tailgate down with his hand.
Police checking the speed of cars from their patrol car spotted a small hand emerging from the trunk of a car on their video screen. Puzzled by what they had seen, the traffic officers flagged down the vehicle and found the 15-year-old boy in the back.
The father, when challenged over his novel-yet-hazardous approach to problem-solving, was unapologetic. "It's okay like that, too," he said.
Europol's 'Wish you were here' postcards to villains
The EU police agency hopes to track down some of the continent's most wanted criminals by urging wayward wrongdoers to return home. The mock-up postccards are intended to draw attention to a "Europe's Most Wanted" list.
Image: eumostwanted.eu
Mamma mia!
The Italian contribution plays on the country's strong culinary traditions. "Don't you miss the taste of real Italian cuisine?" it asks "Marco." The 37-year-old Marco Lauro is wanted for murder, drug trafficking and robbery.
Image: eumostwanted.eu
Creatures of the night
Romania's postcard drew on the Dracula theme, promising "Gheorghe" a vampire parade on his return. "Come late at night, we will be waiting for you," it advises. Police want to speak to 49-year-old Gheorghe Clapon about theft by deception, money laundering and use of forgery.
Image: eumostwanted.eu
Hot on his heels
The Polish postcard offered a less rosy prospect for Krzysztof. "We have reserved a big room you," it said, also promising him a meeting with a dragon in a cave. The 50-year-old Krzysztof Kus is wanted for assault and robbery and illegal trafficking in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.
Image: eumostwanted.eu
A serving of fries
Belgium also sought to tantalize the tastebuds of its most wanted villain "Artur." The message extolls the superiority of Belgian fries and urges him to come back to enjoy them once more. Police are seeking 37-year-old Artur Nawrocki over drug trafficking charges.
Image: eumostwanted.eu
Self-assembly justice
Sweden's design was inspired by instruction manuals from home furnishing giant Ikea, with instructions on how to bring about the arrest of "Simon." The 26-year-old Simon Rolf Arnamo is wanted on charges of murder and grievous bodily harm.
Image: eumostwanted.eu
Offline and unreachable
Estonia's piece also had a corporate theme, featuring symbols from the online telephone service Skype. "Ernest" is told to get back in touch after being offline for a while. Police in the Baltic state would like to speak to 32-year-old Ernest Gammer about a charge of grievous bodily harm.
Image: eumostwanted.eu
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'Irresponsible behavior'
The Berlin police department disagreed. Determined to get their message across, police took to Facebook and Twitter to highlight the story using the hashtag #gehtnicht — meaning "not okay."
"You just have to think about what the consequences could have been in the event of emergency braking," a police spokeswoman told the Die Welt newspaper. "It's irresponsible."
Facebook responses varied from the mildly amused — "A normal trip home from Ikea" and "typical Berlin" — to the indignant. "How could somebody put their child in so much danger?" wrote one user.
The driver was issued two fines — 60 euros for his son being in the trunk and without a seat belt, plus a 35-euro penalty for failing to secure the contents of the vehicle properly — as well as a point on his license.
