It was on September 26 exactly that the Parisian police arrested a band of gangsters in Delahaye.
Here is the translation of the press release that accompanies the press photo:
THIS CAR OF THE SWEDISH CONSUL, STOLEN BY THE GANGSTERS OF CHAMPIGNY HAD BEEN TAKEN IN PURSUIT BY THAT OF THE PREFECT OF POLICE!
Great offensive of the Parisian police against the gangsters of the capital. A den of bandits was discovered this night in an inn of Champigny during a monster police operation.
The leaders of the gang tried to flee in a Delahaye stolen from the Swedish consul, but they were chased by the Prefect of Police himself and forced to abandon the car.
INTERPRESS PHOTO shows:
The diplomatic Delahaye, with flat tires and machine-gun bullet holes in the doors, was brought back to the Quai des Orfèvres where inspectors examined it.
The newspaper “Le Figaro” of September 27, 1946 described the event in great detail, describing the pursuit of the Delahaye by the Prefect of Police, with a pistol at the ready, which nevertheless allowed the two fugitives to escape, although it was not known at the time that one of them, Pierre Loutrel, was none other than Public Enemy No. 1, known as Pierrot le Fou.
As for the Swedish consul, the owner of the car, it could well be Raoul Nordling, who left his name in the history of the liberation of Paris for having been able to negotiate the surrender of the German troops with General Von Scholtiz. This episode gave rise to the film “Diplomatie” with André Dussolier in the role of Nordling.
For the moment this thesis remains a supposition but I hope to clarify the question one day or another.
I don’t know if this Delahaye survived this story but what is certain is that it had a particular destiny.
[The photo of the Delahaye reproduced in this article is part of the JWA Classic collection].
