Teens in court after police chase, crash

One of the suspects is treated by St John medics for a leg injury.

Two teenagers have appeared in court in relation to a dramatic chase and crash in which a police officer was seconds from being seriously hurt or even killed.

Taiwhanga Niha, 19, of Pipiwai, appeared in the Kaikohe District Court on Tuesday charged with unlawfully getting into a Mazda Bounty ute, burglary of a building on Waimate North Rd near Kerikeri, and stealing a woman's handbag in Paihia.

All three charges relate to incidents on Saturday. He was jointly charged with the burglary and theft with a 16-year-old from Whangarei.

The 16-year-old appeared in the Kaikohe Youth Court and cannot be named because of his age. He also faces a raft of charges in relation to Monday's police pursuit and crash, including reckless driving, driving while forbidden, failing to stop, and unlawfully taking a motor vehicle.

He was bailed to a Whangarei address under a 24-hour curfew and is due back in youth court on October 20. Niha was bailed to a Pipiwai address and is due back in court on October 28.

The drama began on Monday morning when a Kaikohe resident recognised a stolen Mazda Bounty ute from a post on the Northland Grapevine page. Police chased it to Puketona Junction where it ran over road spikes and lost control about 500m further north, hitting the side of a bridge then ramming a parked police car.

The officer had just taken a second set of spikes from the boot when he heard the out-of-control ute smash into the bridge. It missed him by seconds and shunted his patrol car down a seven-metre bank.

It is understood one of the offenders tried to attack police and had to be restrained with help from a member of the public. The only injuries in the crash, a gash to one leg, were suffered by the 16-year-old.

Some of the construction tools also taken in the Waimate North Rd burglary have been been recovered.

Senior Sergeant Chris McLellan, of Kerikeri police, said the officer involved in the near-miss was shaken but unhurt.

"He's back at work and back into it," he said.