A BMW car has been badly damaged after a police pursuit at Kāpiti, north of Wellington. / Video by Mark Mitchell
Four innocent members of the public were injured - two in carjackings - as a man being pursued by police crashed three different vehicles during a lengthy chase north of Wellington.
The man being pursued north of Wellington crashed three different vehicles, including carjacking two vehicles after his first car, a stolen BMW, crashed near a motorway offramp.
The BMW car was badly damaged and two other SUVs were also crashed during a police pursuit at Kāpiti that ended on the expressway.
Four innocent members of the public were injured in the saga, police confirmed.
Police say a man, 25, is now in custody after three vehicles were used during the pursuit, which had earlier been abandoned due to concerns for public safety. He will appear in court tomorrow.
The incident has caused extensive delays on the Kāpiti Expressway this morning.
Police said the drama began at 7.30am this morning when a person was attacked, suffering facial injuries, and robbed of their vehicle, which was then driven north on State Highway 1.
"The man has subsequently taken another two vehicles in the Raumati area - one in Poplar Avenue and another in the Raumati Beach shopping area," police said.
A silver BMW car stopped in Poplar Ave suffered extensive frontal damage after being driven on its rims. It appeared the car had been driven over road spikes near Paekakariki.
Witnesses said they saw armed police officers and four police cars had pursued a driver fleeing along the expressway.
Kapiti woman Aura Bailey-Guest was caught up in the pursuit.
She said they saw a car crashed near the Kapiti expressway at Poplar Avenue and pulled over to see what was happening.
"Then some guy comes running up to the car so we open the door and he tried to rip my partner out of the car and steal my car."
Bailey-Guest said they kicked him away and the man tried to get into three cars behind them but the drivers locked their doors.
"He finally got into a car and drove off."
Bailey-Guest said she was trained in traffic control, so "chucked on her hi-vis vest" and started controlling the traffic that had backed up from the deal.
She said she was "in shock" afterwards and it was "very crazy" to experience.
Jan McKenzie-Laurence said on Facebook that the pursued driver had crashed the BMW at the Poplar Ave roundabout, got out of his car and physically hauled her friend out of her Honda CRV while she was stopped at the give way, then sped off in it.
Police said one person was injured in the carjacking.
The carjacked Honda CRV was found crashed into a fence in Rimu Rd.
Witness Jacinda Thorn was cycling home along Kāpiti Rd after dropping her daughter off at school when she heard "a lot of sirens" and decided to get off her bike and move to the side of the road.
"I saw the grey Honda come screaming past, probably I estimate around 90km/h," she said, noting the area had a 50km/h limit and was "really busy" with morning traffic.
The Honda weaved across the centre line before coming back on to the correct side of the road.
"About two seconds later there was a couple of marked police cars that came after it."
Thorn said she was glad she hadn't been on the road at the time the Honda sped past.
A Rutherford & Bond Toyota Kāpiti spokesperson confirmed a vehicle had been taken from their yard in Ihakara St, around the corner from Rimu Rd where the Honda CRV was found crashed into a fence.
Police said a third person was injured at the Raumati Beach shopping area when the vehicle was taken by the man being pursued.
And a fourth person was injured in a minor crash in Peka Peka before the SUV was forced to stop by police.
The damaged SUV, wedged against a wire median barrier. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Raumati Beach school principal Mike Farrelly said he saw about six police cars pursuing another driver past his school this morning.
"The speeds were pretty excessive and they put a real fright into the kids on road patrol as well."
Farrelly said the children on road patrol duty were feeling a little uneasy but they talked through what happened and are now feeling okay and back in class now.
"Usually at that time in the morning ... there are a lot of kids going across that crossing."
The scene at the Kāpiti Expressway. Photo / David Haxton
NZTA say due to a police incident, there are currently significant northbound delays at the end of the expressway in Peka Peka.
SH1 RAUMATI, NORTHBOUND - POLICE INCIDENT - 9:35AM Due to a police incident, the northbound off-ramp at Poplar Avenue is CLOSED. Please use an alternate route. ^RS pic.twitter.com/t4QUQquXwo
— Waka Kotahi NZTA Wellington (@WakaKotahiWgtn) April 2, 2019
