Beverly Hills Drag Racer Identified As Qatar Sheikh, Flees The U.S.
The Beverly Hills drag racer, who was terrorizing the upscale Los Angeles neighborhood and was identified as a Qatari Sheikh, did not have diplomatic immunity and has reportedly fled the U.S.
As reported by the Inquisitr, a man was seen drag racing two very expensive cars — a Ferrari and Porsche 911 GT3 — down the streets of Beverly Hills. He was identified as Qatari Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad al Thani. Speeding was the least of the man’s offenses, as video footage captured by onlookers show the men driving both cars running a stop sign as unsuspecting motorists try to get out the way.
Al Thani is a member of Qatar’s royal family and is well-known in the international racing community, according to Jalopnik. On Thursday police finally confirmed it was his yellow Ferrari seen drag racing through the Beverly Hills neighborhood last week, after terrorized residents called to complain.
In the video, the Beverly Hills drag racer appears to damage the expensive yellow Ferrari, when he goes over an intersection too fast. When the vehicles return to the home, several men are seen looking at the smoking car. When police arrived they stated the man claimed he was protected under diplomatic immunity.
Police Chief Dominick Rivetti said the Ferrari was connected to Al Thani. However, LAPD Lt. Lincoln Hoshino said it was unlikely the Beverly Hills drag racer had diplomatic immunity and investigators could not confirm whether he actually was drag racing through Beverly Hills.
“No one produced any evidence of who was at the wheel of the two cars. The drivers weren’t visible on the videos or photographs.”
“What I do know is you can’t claim diplomatic immunity if you don’t have it, and you can’t use that as an excuse to jeopardize the public or commit crimes,” Rivetti said, according to the New York Post.
Jalopnik also reports the Beverly Hills drag racer has now fled the country and the home seen on the video is empty. Rivetti said in a news conference Thursday, that since the drivers did not have immunity, they could have been prosecuted had the investigation run its course.
In addition, the Beverly Hills drag racer allegedly threatened NBC4 video journalist Jacob Rogers, when he was confronted, telling him, “I could have you killed and get away with it.”
Chief Rivetti said the City of Beverly Hills communicated its outrage to the Qatari consulate via the U.S. State Department.
WARNING: NSFW Video (Graphic language)
[Image via YouTube]
