Two men were arrested and a third remains unaccounted for after the trio fled the scene of a three-car accident after a short police pursuit in Wellington.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Police observed a gold coloured Magna speeding along Warne Street About 1.25pm on Wednesday.
Orana Local Area Command Acting Inspector Richard Morley, said police tried to catch-up to the vehicle – containing a person wanted on several warrants.
The car was heading along Percy Street when it collided with two other vehicles at the intersection of Warne Street. The impact caused extensive front-end damage to two of the vehicles.
A woman travelling in a four-wheel-drive ute was taken to hospital by ambulance as a precaution.
The two male occupants of the third vehicle were unharmed.
Acting Inspector Morley said two people “decamped” from the car being chased.
“Two were caught and a third got away.
“As a result of the pursuit and traffic matters both those persons were interviewed in relation and will appear in court today on those charges.
“They assisted police with inquiries and the investigation is still continuing.”
Police came under fire on Facebook where people asked why the pursuit wasn’t called-off for safety reasons.
Acting Inspector Morley said while people are quick to criticise the decision, they must first put themselves in that situation.
“They’re all public streets under the Act, it doesn’t matter what street they’re on, a pursuit could occur anywhere,” he said.
“There’s no stipulation where you can and can’t chase on a public street, it just becomes a problem with the conditions, the traffic, the number of people on the street – all these decisions have to be taken at the time that the pursuits occur.
“If there’s heavy traffic, a lot of people around – the pursuits are terminated, but each one is different, so the circumstances of these things occur and it’s up to the individual officers who are driving the car at the time to make those decisions.
“There’s a lot to take into account.”
In other police news Acting Inspector Morley confirmed investigations are continuing into the theft of an ATM from the Federal Hotel in September.
That matter, along with investigations into the head-on collision along Nowrie Drive in September after which a four-year-old boy and his father were airlifted to hospital, is being handled by detectives from Dubbo.
Acting Inspector Morley said police are working to maintain a lower crime rate across the LAC, with the rate of break and enters, and motor vehicle and property crime staying consistent or on the decrease.