Driver who ran over yellow crosses to appear in court

The man who on Sunday lunchtime drove into the middle of a public square and ran over hundreds of yellow crosses set up as a protest by independence supporters has been detained by police and has been summoned to appear in court.

The incident took place in the main square of Vic, a town in central Catalonia, where independence supporters had set up some 2,500 yellow crosses in an installation showing solidarity with jailed and exiled Catalan political leaders.

Speaking on the radio on Monday morning, the mayor of Vic, Anna Erra, confirmed that the man arrested was the owner of the car, and she added: “It seems like the driver has some sort of psychological problem; we do not know if he is affiliated with any political group.”

Erra had earlier condemned the incident on Twitter, and thanked the Vic local police for acting so quickly in finding the suspected perpetrator, along with “everyone else who provided information and showed their support.”

A video showing the Citroën C4 car being driven around the large square, running over hundreds of the crosses, while some pedestrians shouted insults and even kicked out at the vehicle, quickly went viral on the internet.

The Vic council has confirmed that it will press charges against the man responsible, probably for hate offenses and dangerous driving. Meanwhile, Catalan president, Quim Torra, called the incident “very serious” and pledged “zero tolerance” against violent people.