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A man fleeing police smashed into two cars carrying women and children in a central Auckland suburb yesterday.
The man, who police believe was not wearing a seatbelt, was taken to Auckland City Hospital with a gashed head after the stolen vehicle he was driving crashed into the cars at the intersection of Kingsview and Henley Rds in Mt Eden about 3.15pm. The women and children were not injured.
Police, who cordoned off the intersection, examined items inside the stolen car to see if they were related to other crimes in the area.
Senior Sergeant Matt Rogers said staff began chasing the man about three streets away because he was speeding.
In an attempt to evade them, he drove through a stop sign and then glanced off a first vehicle, which pushed him sideways at speed into a car containing a woman and her young son. The pair were shaken by the crash, Mr Rogers said.
"He's struck the oncoming vehicle on his driver's side going sideways, so his driver's side has borne the brunt of the impact."
Mr Rogers said he was confident police had acted under the rules for chases, which require officers to pull out at certain speeds due to the risk to the public.
Speeds, which were about 70km/h, had slowed down again before the crash, he said.
"Unfortunately he's been an idiot. He's gone through a stop sign and hurt people, but he's hurt himself more."
Traffic-related charges were likely against the driver, Mr Rogers said.
An investigation into the crash was under way. Staff would also conduct an internal inquiry, which the Police Complaints Authority would review because the crash involved injury (to the fugitive).
The crash comes amid scrutiny of police chases following the death of Luke Wooster, 17, who was killed at the weekend when his Honda CRX smashed into a bridge near Hastings.
Officers had turned around to stop him for speeding moments before he crashed. Witnesses estimated he was doing 180km/h in a 70km/h zone when he hit the bridge.
