KEY POINTS:
Police are seeking witnesses to a pursuit which ended with a teenager being seriously injured.
The 18-year-old boy was the driver of a vehicle that fled from police early this morning in Tauranga.
The vehicle crashed after a short pursuit, trapping the teen, who remains in a serious condition in Tauranga Hospital.
The incident has been reported to the Independent Police Complaints Authority, and Tauranga police are now appealing for witnesses.
The crash happened near the hospital, with the car sliding off the road and ending in a vacant lot.
Police said officers had tried to stop the man, a local, as he was driving along central city Willow St about 5am.
They said the 18-year-old sped off as a patrol car attempted to pull his vehicle over on Willow St about 5am.
Sergeant Mark Holmes said the vehicle fled on to Cameron Rd and headed towards Greerton, failing to stop at a red light at the intersection of 11th Avenue.
The pursuit continued for a short distance before the teenager lost control of his vehicle at the intersection of Cameron Rd and Garden Pl.
The vehicle slid sideways, hit the kerb and then a tree before coming to rest in a vacant lot opposite Tauranga Hospital.
Mr Holmes asked anyone who witnessed the pursuit to contact Tauranga police on (07) 577 4300.
He said they were particularly interested in speaking to the driver of a vehicle which was overtaken at the intersection of Garden Pl and Cameron Rd.
- NZPA
