Police seek the arrest of driver in speeding death

By Jane Chen  |   2009-5-16  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

POLICE in Hangzhou have applied for an arrest warrant for a drag race driver who allegedly killed a pedestrian in the capital city of Zhejiang Province.

The police submitted the application after their investigation concluded driver Hu Bing, 20, should bear full responsibility for the accident, said police spokesperson Zheng Xiansheng yesterday, according to Zhejiang's major Web portal zjol.com.

Hu is being detained on vehicular manslaughter charges.

The case could escalate into a criminal case and if convicted, Hu could face up to three years in jail.

Hu, a university student, was driving a speeding Mitsubishi sports car when he hit Tan Zhuo, 25, on a pedestrian walkway on the evening of May 7, Xinhua news agency reported.

Tan flew 5 meters into the air before he hit the ground and died.

Zheng apologized to the public this morning for a police announcement on May 8 that stated Hu's car had been traveling at 70 kilometers per hour at the time of the accident.

That information, which sparked a theory that Hu's well-off family had gained police protection, was inaccurate, Zheng said.

The speed of the car has been estimated to have been between 84.1 and 101.2 kilometers per hour, according to a forensic report published yesterday by the police.