Alleged car thieves lead police on chase through Hamilton, residents on edge after series of crimes

A spate of crimes in Hamilton has left residents frustrated and on edge, with one local saying “we don’t feel safe” after a major police incident this morning.

Alleged car thieves are accused of fleeing from police and leading officers on a chase through the city today, nearly crashing into innocent motorists.

Police Inspector Hywel Jones confirmed four youths had been arrested after “a protracted fleeing-driver incident”.

One Hamilton resident told the Herald police spotted a vehicle of interest, suspected of being stolen and used to allegedly commit other crimes.

Jones said police received several reports of vehicles being stolen around Hamilton at about 9.30am today.

Police did not initially chase the car, but the Eagle helicopter was overhead, the resident said.

Jones said the Eagle started tracking the car from 10.30am.

The car was spotted in Hamilton East, the resident said. The helicopter then tracked the car around the city.

“There were a few close calls, accident-wise, due to the high speed of the vehicle,” the woman claimed.

“Members of the public also tried to intervene.”

Police deployed road spikes multiple times, but the vehicle managed to dodge them, she said.

Jones said the car was being driven dangerously.

The car was successfully spiked on Kahikatea Drive shortly after 11am.

The driver continued with police in pursuit, the woman said.

A low-speed chase continued until the driver stopped on Karen Crescent, she said.

She understood four youths were then arrested.

“We need help here. It’s terrible. We don’t feel safe,” the woman said.

Jones said a 15-year-old, a 17-year-old and two 16-year-olds were arrested and police were considering charges against them.

“Inquiries are ongoing, including to determine whether any of the four arrested have links to a number of car thefts and aggravated robberies in the city over recent days,” Jones said.

He said police would not be making any further comment while the matter was before the courts.

Meanwhile, a post on a local community page, the Hamilton Crime and Information Admin, encouraged people to report any suspicious activity and stay away from any offenders in case they got hurt.

“We also would like to thank the Waikato police who have been doing an amazing job,” the post read.

It follows the arrests of four other youths after an alleged carjacking in Hamilton yesterday.

The group were said to have fled police before officers spiked the car. Police claimed the four teens tried to escape on foot with the machete-wielding driver allegedly attempting to carjack the vehicle of a member of the public but was unsuccessful.

After arresting all four, police said officers found knives, machetes and balaclavas. The police statement said inquiries were ongoing to establish whether the teens were tied to other car thefts and aggravated robberies over recent days.

The Herald confirmed yesterday that two of the four youths had absconded from the Government’s bootcamp trial and were found as police responded to the serious incident.

The two teenagers who went missing from the bootcamp were revealed on Thursday. It came days after another participant in the military-style academy died in a car accident.

One of the teens who absconded did so while on leave to attend the crash victim’s tangi. The second teen who absconded did so while on “community placement” with their family.

Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.

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