Drunk hearse driver caught swerving with coffin on board near Częstochowa, blows 2.5 promille
A 51-year-old hearse driver was stopped by police near Częstochowa after a witness saw the Mercedes swerve. Inside the cargo area, police found a coffin with a body.
The swerving hearse
On Monday, 15 June 2026, around 9:30 a.m., a witness driving on ulica Częstochowska in the village of Radostków (Częstochowa County) spotted a funeral home Mercedes moving erratically. The vehicle was veering from one kerb to the other in what the witness described as a slalom. Fearing an imminent crash, the witness dialled the emergency number and reported the hearse. By the time the call concluded the car had disappeared from sight, but the description was immediately broadcast to patrols.
Police stop and breath test
Officers from the Częstochowa municipal police (KMP Częstochowa) located the described hearse a short time later on ulica Okulickiego, already within the city limits of Częstochowa. They pulled it over and found a 51-year-old man from Radomsko behind the wheel. A roadside breathalyser showed 2.5 per mille of alcohol in his system, five times the Polish legal limit of 0.2 per mille.
Coffin discovery
When officers checked the cargo compartment, they made a discovery that even the experienced patrol described as a shock.
During the check, police officers inspected the cargo area. It turned out the man was transporting a coffin with a body in such a state.
The driver was on duty for a funeral home and was supposed to deliver the deceased to the ceremony. Instead, police immediately removed him from the vehicle and secured the Mercedes.
Aftermath and legal threats
A sober employee of the same funeral company was called to the scene. Police formally handed over the hearse together with the coffin to him so the body could reach its destination safely. The 51-year-old now faces criminal proceedings for driving under the influence of alcohol. Under Polish law he risks up to three years in prison, a multi-year driving ban and a heavy fine. The Częstochowa police publicly thanked the witness, stressing that without the swift call the drunken driver could have caused a serious, possibly fatal, collision.
