M4 Coupe

Make
BMW
Segment
Coupe

A BMW M4 (G82) driver has been arrested following a high-speed police pursuit in Forsyth County, Georgia. The chase occurred in December last year when 22-year-old Islam Aslanov failed to pull over for a patrolling deputy.

According to the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office, the deputy intended to pull the vehicle over for failure to dim headlights. However, the German performance car started accelerating to 70 mph in a 35 mph speed zone. This prompted the officer to engage his emergency lights and initiate a traffic stop. Aslanov failed to stop and accelerated in an attempt to get away from the pursuing officer.

As seen in the footage below, Aslanov navigated his way to Buford Highway, where he drove at speeds of up to 100 mph. Despite his obvious power advantage, the deputy stuck with the fleeing driver and soon radioed for backup.

Another deputy later clocked the M4 traveling at 141 mph on GA-400, an astonishing speed for public roads. With the M-powered BMW proving a worthy adversary for Georgia police, a third pursuit vehicle intercepted the M4 driver.

On yet another straight road, the BMW pulls away from the police vehicle enthusiastically but is soon thwarted. While attempting to make a left turn, the officer tries to perform a pit maneuver, which seems to throw Aslanov off his game. For some reason, the 22-year-old slows down, allowing the vehicle to be brought to a quick stop with yet another pit attempt.

Curiously, when asked why he attempted to evade police, Aslanov said he "freaked out" when he saw the police car behind him.

Aside from a bruised ego and a battered BMW, Aslanov will now have to face charges of speeding, reckless driving, failure to dim lights, and fleeing/attempting to elude.

While no one was injured, this high-speed pursuit could have ended differently. It also raises questions about how readily available high-performance vehicles are, even to those who may not be responsible enough to drive them responsibly. A tragedy in Australia involving a Lamborghini Huracan has prompted some politicians to lobby for special licenses for high-performance cars.

When you see things like this, it starts to make sense.

Last year, a similar incident occurred in Arkansas when a suspect failed to stop for police and reached speeds of up to 140 mph on public roads. The 19-year-old driver of the Chevrolet Camaro lost control of the muscle car and crashed. Again, no one was injured, but it could have been a lot worse.

In the same month, a 17-year-old Ford Mustang driver was arrested for doing 108 mph in a 40 mph zone, yet another example of an irresponsible driver in a powerful car. We're not sure what the solution is, but it's clear that there's a problem on American roads.

We'd never suggest banning drivers from attaining sports cars, but it would be great to see mandatory advanced driver training for less experienced drivers who insist on piloting powerful vehicles.