The German truck driver suspected of causing the death of Davide Rebellin after running him over last November has been arrested by German police.
62-year-old Wolfgang Rieke is being held in custody in Münster, the Vicenza public prosecutor’s office has announced.
German paper Bild quoted Hamm public prosecutor Elmar Hamm that Rieke, who was wanted via European arrest warrant, turned himself in to police.
German authorities will now have 60 days (per EU law) to decide whether to extradite Rieke to Italy, where he’d face charges for the crimes of vehicular homicide and a failure to provide assistance. German police were previously unable to arrest Rieke as the crime of vehicular homicide doesn’t exist in the country.
Rieke has previously been charged with two crimes in Italy – in 2001 pleading guilty to a non-fatal hit and run in Foggia before his sentence was overturned due to the statute of limitations, while in 2014 he was charged with driving his truck while under the influence of alcohol in Chieti.
51-year-old Rebellin had recently retired after 29 years in the professional peloton. He was riding his bike in Montebello Vicentino on November 30 when he was run over and killed.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, quoting the Vicenza public prosecutor’s office, Rieke exited his cab to approach Rebellin before quickly returning and driving away, with several witnesses photographing him doing so.
German investigators tracked the truck with the assistance of the Italian Carabinieri, finding deformations in the section of the vehicle which struck Rebellin as well as evidence that it had been washed with concentrated acidic detergent.
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