Czech police have arrested a 51-year-old man they say was driving a distinctive red racing car that has been photographed and filmed on the country's motorways on multiple occasions since 2019.
Officers followed the vehicle to a property in the village of Buk, about 60 kilometres southwest of Prague, after a video emerged on Sunday morning showing the car travelling along the D4 motorway and stopping for petrol. The man was detained at his home after initially refusing to leave the vehicle, local media reported.
Video captured by reporters showed the driver sitting in the car in front of his garage, arguing with officers and saying they were trespassing on private property before eventually agreeing to be taken to a police station. He was still wearing a red racing driver's outfit and a helmet when he was led away. Subsequent media reports said he declined to answer questions at the station.
A relative interviewed by local outlets described a large police response. "The house had been surrounded by several dozen police cars and a helicopter," the man identified as the suspect's son told local media, calling the deployment disproportionate to what he described as "a supposed traffic violation of ours." He said police alleged the family had been towing the racing car and that it had been speeding on the motorway a few minutes earlier; he denied knowledge of that claim.
Police first engaged with the so-called "phantom" racing car in 2019, after images and video of the vehicle circulated online. At that time officers tracked down the vehicle and questioned its owner, who denied ever driving it on the motorway. It has not been publicly confirmed whether the person arrested on Sunday is the same individual questioned in 2019. Identification in earlier footage was hindered by the driver's helmet.
Although the car has frequently been described in media reports as a Ferrari Formula 1 car, automotive website auto.cz identified the vehicle as a Dallara GP2/08, a single-seater developed by the Italian manufacturer Dallara for the GP2 Series, a feeder category that has since been rebranded as the FIA Formula 2 Championship.
Authorities said the owner faces a fine for operating a vehicle on a motorway without headlights, indicators or number plates. Police did not immediately release further details about any additional charges or the status of their investigation.