Police arrest driver after hit-and-run leaves 20-year-old woman in coma in Piastow

The collision in Piastow

Emergency responders and police patrols were dispatched shortly after midnight on Sunday, 4 October 2026, following reports of an unconscious woman lying on a roadway in Piastow, Masovian Voivodeship. Investigators determined that a 20-year-old woman was crossing the street correctly at an official, marked pedestrian crossing when a passenger car struck her at high speed. The driver failed to stop, offered no medical assistance to the victim, and accelerated away from the area. Paramedics transported the injured woman to a local hospital, where medical staff confirmed that she had slipped into a coma. Officers noted that visibility and weather conditions were favorable at the time of the collision despite the late hour.

The crossing is marked, the woman was on the crossing, she was crossing correctly. The incident occurred after midnight, but atmospheric conditions, for that time, were favorable. The man drove away from the scene, left the victim on site without providing her with assistance.

Investigation and rapid arrest

Following the report received by the duty officer at the District Police Headquarters in Pruszkow, local officers initiated an urgent manhunt with support from capital police from Warsaw. Search teams examined security camera footage along surrounding roads and analyzed mobile phone location data to identify the vehicle and its trajectory. Within several hours, police tracked the vehicle, identified as a sports Mercedes, to a residential address in Piaseczno. Officers entered the apartment and took the 32-year-old male driver into custody before noon on Sunday, less than 12 hours after the hit-and-run took place. A female passenger who had traveled in the vehicle during the incident was also detained at the residence.

Suspect background and sobriety checks

At the moment of his detention in Piaseczno, the 32-year-old driver underwent breathalyzer testing, which registered over one per mille of alcohol in his system. Investigators collected blood samples to establish conclusively whether he was intoxicated or under the influence of other narcotics at the exact moment of the midnight crash. The male suspect was already well known to law enforcement personnel due to an existing criminal record for previous offenses. Police transferred both the driver and the female passenger to temporary detention facilities while evidence was cataloged. Officers collected forensic data from the sports Mercedes to verify the mechanics of the collision and assess structural damage to the car.

At the time of detention, the man was under the influence of alcohol. As to whether he was under the influence of alcohol at the moment of the incident, or under the influence of other intoxicating substances, blood test results will answer these questions for us.

Legal proceedings and prosecutor oversight

The District Prosecutor's Office in Pruszkow assumed formal oversight of the investigation to supervise procedural tasks and evidence collection. Prosecutors scheduled formal interrogations and the presentation of charges for Tuesday, 6 October 2026. Police officials confirmed that both detainees will face criminal charges relating to the collision and the subsequent failure to assist the victim. The incident follows other fatal pedestrian collisions across Poland over the same weekend, including a Saturday crash in Nowy Sacz where a 51-year-old pedestrian died on a marked crossing during a suspected illegal street race. In that separate case, a 21-year-old driver driving a Volkswagen Passat tested sober following the impact.