Alleged car thief burns to death in stolen vehicle

By REBECCA ANNA STOIL
An alleged car thief lost control of the vehicle that he was driving during a police chase, slammed into a tree and was burned to death in the inferno that ensued Monday evening. The 33-year-old Lod resident apparently lost control of the vehicle at Sirkin junction, after leading police on a pursuit from Petah Tikvah. Fire and rescue teams were scrambled to the scene of the crash, and managed to remove the driver from the vehicle, but MDA teams were forced to pronounce him dead on the scene. Shortly before the crash, police had received a report from a Petah Tikvah resident that an assailant had threatened him into handing over the keys to his sedan. Following that report, at least one police patrol car was sent out in hot pursuit of the Mazda 6. Police said that they were investigating the incident.