Rude awakening for Whanganui East residents as stolen car crashes through fence

A man was kicked in the face after confronting an occupant of a suspected stolen car which crashed into his neighbour's fence yesterday morning.

Whanganui East resident Jason Lowe was checked out at hospital after the incident but suffered no major injuries.

"My head is really sore but at least nothing was broken."

Neighbour Stella James said she heard a car racing around the block outside her Eastown Rd address before it crashed on to her front lawn and into her veranda at about 5am.

"One of the young guys was outside the car and when I told him to turn the engine off, he said he didn't have a key."

When Lowe came over and spoke to the two occupants of the car, one of them attacked him, James said.

"He brought his foot up and kicked me in the side of the face and tackled me to the ground," Lowe said.

The first occupant had taken off on foot and the assailant also ran off before police and ambulance arrived.

Lowe was taken to hospital by St John staff and an examination revealed no broken bones.

James said a police handler and dog arrived and went after the two men but they were then too far away to catch.

The two neighbours said speeding cars and drivers doing doughnuts were such a regular occurrence in the area that they were not surprised by the incident.

"There are cars speeding past every Friday and Saturday night and often through the week," said Lowe.

"I have been complaining to the council and police since 2014 because I am worried for my family.

"It's more than a nuisance - it's downright dangerous."

Lowe said he has asked for a camera to be installed in the area but was told it was not an option.

"Police do patrol the area more often since I started complaining.

"If they [speeding drivers] want to behave like this, they could at least do it away from people's homes.

"I am trying to look after my family and I'm so tired of this behaviour."

A police spokesperson said the incident was being investigated and the suspects had not been caught.

"The vehicle is believed to be stolen. Attempts were made to locate the males who had run off, however, no arrests at this stage."