Chase ends with triple fatality
By Greg Hilson,WNS New Zealand Bureau Chief
AUCKLAND - Three teenagers have died as they sped away from police in a horror start to the Christmas season on the roads. Six hours before the crash police had pulled the 16-year-old driver over for speeding and driving while unlicensed. Driver Lance Duff and his two mates, Cheyenne Freeman, 19, and Walter Russell, 17, were celebrating a birthday but their partying ended up in a fatal, high speed police chase. The trio were at a set of traffic lights in Auckland's CBD just before 4am when they were spotted by a patrol car.
"One of the occupants was standing half out of the sun roof, yahooing at pedestrians on Queen St," says Inspector John Mitchell, adding that the passengers were drinking from a bladder from a wine cask. Mitchell says a police officer started to record the driver's details but had only written his Christian name when the teen accelerated away. The chase reached speeds of 190 kilometres an hour along the northwestern motorway and the headlights were turned off during the chase. Police following 500 metres behind could not see the Honda Prelude clearly because it was a very dark blue and with its lights off. Mitchell says they pulled back to give the car more space. While exiting the motorway the driver lost control, ricocheting off a barrier into a wire fence, sending the car 15 metres in to the air and uprooting a tree on its flightpath before landing upside down in a gully. "First of all I thought a light aircraft had come down...I heard a vroomp...and then I heard snapping...and then I heard three thuds in quick succession," eyewitness Diana Futcher said. Mitchell says the crime car didn't witness the accident and drove past the scene initially due to the distance they were behind. It was not the 16-year-old driver's first brush with the law.
Earlier in the night at 10pm he was pulled over by police for speeding and driving while unlicensed. When informed his car was to be impounded he drove off at speed but no pursuit occurred on that occasion. It is not yet known if he was drinking. The young driver also had driving charges relating to a pursuit in Henderson in March. He leaves behind a pregnant girlfriend. Unfortunately it's the same classic, tragic message about speed and alcohol and young, inexperienced drivers," says Inspector John Mitchell. A Police Complaints Authority investigation into the police chase is under way.
posted by wnsworld @ 11:47 PM
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