“I knew I was under arrest, so I put my hands up and I just remember standing there for about five seconds, 10 seconds and then this car, ... just rams me straight away, boom,” he told the authority.
Around 4.30am on December 5, 2022, police responded to reports that a man had presented a pistol at two different people while attempting to steal their vehicles.
The offender then stole a white van, triggering a police search, and within 20 minutes, a crew member of the Eagle police helicopter saw it being driven west on the Auckland motorway.
The helicopter crew began filming, which included capturing the radio commentary.
Footage is usually live streamed from Eagle to the NorthComms Emergency Communications Centre, to allow a shift commander to see what is happening and give directions, but the digital link was not operating, so it fell to Eagle to provide a verbal commentary.
The crew tracked the van from the motorway into Cedar Heights Ave, a dead-end street in Massey.
The offender parked the van in the avenue, got out and after speaking to a person he appeared to know, he broke into two nearby houses.
It was later established that, in the second of the houses, he stole the keys to a white sedan which was parked on the driveway.
While the crew in the air was monitoring activities, two officers, including a dog handler, prepared to approach and apprehend the offender.
As other officers began driving towards the offender, he went past and sped off in the opposite direction. Most of the officers turned to follow.
The offender drove over road spikes set up on a motorway onramp, causing all four tyres to disintegrate as he drove at speeds up to 140 kilometres per hour.
Because of the public danger he presented, permission was given for the offender to be chased and apprehended, with a warning that he was armed.
Once he reached Lincoln Rd, the offender steered the sedan directly into other vehicles, sideswiping one and coming to a stop after crashing into a second.
The offender abandoned the sedan and ran down the road where he tried to enter two other vehicles which had slowed to avoid him.
Eagle reported on the radio that the man was trying to “carjack” a vehicle.
Police officers in vehicles and on foot chased the offender and tried to surround him while commanding him to surrender.
After about 80 metres, he stopped running and turned towards the officers, by which time the dog handler arrived in his dog van.
The officer could not initially see the offender, but he then saw him standing in the middle of the road, facing police and did not look as if he was about to surrender.
The dog handler accelerated and struck the offender with the front bumper of the van because he believed it was too dangerous to delay apprehending him.
The offender was struck in the torso and he fell backwards on to the road where he was handcuffed by police.
When he drove into the scene, the officer considered the use of force options open to him, stating: “There was no less violent means available to me at the time. I could not stop and get [the police dog] out of the vehicle and deploy him.
“If I had stopped to deploy and prepare [the dog], the offender could have harmed another member of the public or other police staff.”
He was also concerned about being potentially exposed to a firearm if he had got out of his vehicle.
Police had concerns that the offender may have sustained non-visible injuries and were cautious when handling him. When no ambulance was readily available, officers took him to hospital.
The authority considered officers applied appropriate aftercare.
Police statements to media at the time said the man was released from hospital the next day and charged with aggravated robbery and assault with intent to rob.
The offender claimed he had surrendered before the dog van struck him.
Police policy in relation to using weapons of opportunity, such as a vehicle, states that it should be seen as a “last resort” when there is a real risk of injury to either themselves or others and no approved tactical options are available.
Chair of the Independent Police Conduct Authority, Judge Kenneth Johnston KC, said that in these specific circumstances, the use of his dog van to strike the offender and bring an end to the serious incident appeared to be a proportionate use of force, and therefore justified.
“It should be noted, however, that use of vehicles in this way is extremely dangerous and brings with it a considerable risk of death or serious injury.
“We do not wish to encourage officers to regularly use this option or see the use of vehicles in this way as simply another tactical option at their disposal,” Judge Johnston said.
Tracy Neal is a Nelson-based Open Justice reporter at NZME. She was previously RNZ’s regional reporter in Nelson-Marlborough and has covered general news, including court and local government for the Nelson Mail.
