Five dead in central Moscow crash involving 'government' vehicle

Five people died and three were badly injured on Wednesday morning in a car crash in downtown Moscow, police said, amid reports that the Mercedes at the centre of the accident may have had government number plates. The crash, involving three vehicles, happened at 6:30 (02:30 GMT) on a northern section of the Garden Ring road. “One of the vehicles burst into flames,” the spokesman said. A police source said the Mercedes vehicle thought to have caused the crash had "temporary" number plates. Other reports said the vehicle's registration plates were among those handed out to government officials and had been removed immediately after the accident. Such number plates are routinely offered for sale by corrupt officials. One of the dead was Russan actor Nikita Yemshanov, who died on his 28th birthday. Around 100 people die every day on Russia’s roads, the most dangerous in Europe, according to statistics. Four people - two adults and two children - were killed later on Wednsday in a crash in central Russia's Saratov region.