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Nigel Farage claims someone 'deliberately tampered with his car' in France causing accident on motorway

The Ukip leader claimed one of his wheels fell off on a motorway near Dunkirk in France, after it had been tampered with

Sunday 03 January 2016 06:47 EST
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Nigel Farage
Nigel Farage (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)

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Nigel Farage has claimed his car was deliberately sabotaged in France causing a motorway crash.

The UKIP leader claimed one of his wheels fell off on a motorway near Dunkirk in France after it had been tampered with. He described how he was forced to stop and flee the car to avoid oncoming traffic.

"It was the middle of bloody nowhere, and I was caught in a very bad position," he told the Mail on Sunday.

"There was a huge section of roadworks with cars going back and forth on the same side of the carriageway. I suddenly realised I was losing steering but there was no hard shoulder to pull on to.

“I slowed down, put the hazards on and then one of the wheels came off. I jumped over the wall as quickly as I bloody well could to get away from lorries and everything.

"The French police looked at it and said that sometimes nuts on one wheel can come a bit loose – but not on all four," he added.

He added: "The French police and mechanics looked at it but I have made no formal report in this country. The mechanics were absolutely certain of [foul play] but I have decided to take no further action.

It is not the first time Mr Farage has been involved in a serious accident. The UKIP leader had to be pulled from the wreckage of a plane after it crashed on the day of the general election in 2010.

The aircraft came down after an election banner caused it to crash, an investigation by the AAIB found.

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