why did he even bother hiting the gas peddle

And he's gone!

I wonder if he was trolling for a race or?
Did the cop light him up with lights and sirens? He did with the lights, no sirens

Been there, done that

Dictionary

ped·dle
/ˈped(ə)l/
Learn to pronounce
verb
1.
try to sell (something, especially small items) by going from house to house or place to place.
"he peddled art and printing materials around the country"
Similar: sell, sell from door to door ,hawk tout vend offer for sale carry stock offer ,market , merchandise ,trade, trade in ,deal in traffic in, push flog
2.
sell (illegal drugs or illicit goods).

The word you meant:
Dictionary
Definitions from Oxford Languages · Learn more
Search for a word
ped·al1
/ˈped(ə)l/

noun
1.
each of a pair of foot-operated levers used for powering a bicycle or other vehicle propelled by the legs.
2.
a foot-operated throttle, brake, or clutch control in a motor vehicle.
"a brake pedal"
verb
1.
move by working the pedals of a bicycle.
"they pedaled along the canal towpath"
2. use the pedals of a piano, organ, or other keyboard instrument, especially in a particular style.
"the organist pedaled furiously.

Only problem with the guy's disappearing act is that he's flashing his high beams after speeding away - it's not very hard to see where he's going.
What other traffic sees could sure be an issue, like the idiots who drive in rain spray with their lights off; only takes a second at speed to miss seeing something like that.

Back in the day, a tail lamp kill switch was something a street racer might do, though the headlights would betray the car's location.
Funny side-story: in my 20s, there was a guy who'd park his Impala to guzzle wine or smoke pot, but he'd always rest his foot on the brake pedal.
So, 4 tail lights blazing away...until one of the neighborhood guys rigged a kill switch rather than get caught when accompanying him...

[i][
We had guys that did rallye racing or track racing that would put a kill switch on the brake light. Guys following them into corners could not tell if and where they started their braking for a turn and thought they could carry their speed into a turn....nope....crash or off the track they went.

sorry kern dog