A car ran into pedestrians in Modena. Several people injured / The driver was caught with the help of passers-by: “A great civic sense”

Several people were hit by a car on Saturday in the center of the northern Italian city of Modena, according to the media in the peninsula, Reuters wrote.

The car broke the window of a store, and the driver stabbed a passerby who tried to stop him, the Italian press also reported.

ANSA wrote that the car hit around 10 pedestrians. At least two people were seriously injured in the incident, the news agency notes.

Rai News reported that seven people were injured in the incident, some of them seriously.

Bystanders intervened to arrest the driver

The driver, a 30-year-old man, tried to run away from the scene of the incident, but was detained by the police, according to the Republicca publication. According to Rai News, four or five bystanders helped catch him.

“I want to thank these citizens. The man was also armed, with a knife; they showed courage and great civic sense. I send them my sincerest thanks in these tragic moments,” said the city's mayor, Massimo Mezzetti.

The incident took place in the center of Modena, on Via Emilia, and the first data suggest that it was an intentional attack, according to Rai News.

“I saw the car approaching, it was heading for the curb. It accelerated suddenly. It was going at least 100 mph,” said a witness.