Police Minister Mark Mitchell is hitting back at the boy racers involved in last night’s destructive events, calling them “cowardly, try-hard idiots”. Photo / Supplied
Police Minister Mark Mitchell is hitting back at the boy racers involved in last night’s destructive events, calling them “cowardly, try-hard idiots”. Photo / Supplied
Police Minister Mark Mitchell condemned boy racers as “cowardly, try-hard idiots” after chaotic events in Levin and Palmerston North.
Police are preparing for more gatherings, emphasising a zero-tolerance approach to dangerous behaviour.
Ten arrests were made, with police and councils commending the strong response to the unlawful gatherings.
The Police Minister has labelled the boy racers involved in last night’s destructive events “cowardly, try-hard idiots” as authorities brace for a another “invasion” tonight in Tauranga.
More boy-racer meetings are set to kick off, after a chaotic meeting around Levin and Palmerston North last night.
Riot policeclashed with up to 1000 attendees. Several people were injured and one young woman was badly hurt when her legs were run over.
Police said they are aware of a number of “anti-social road user gatherings” expected to take place across the country this weekend, including an “invasion” in Tauranga.
However, an attendee at last night’s meeting says it’s not fair to brand all boy racing enthusiasts as troublemakers. Most just turn up to watch burnouts, “cause that’s what we love”.
In a post on X, Police Minister Mark Mitchell said, “The reckless, violent, and utterly disrespectful behaviour from boy racers will continue to be met with a zero tolerance approach by this Govt and police.
“These cowardly, try-hard idiots are an embarrassment and danger to the communities they live in”.
He said last night’s events were a stark example of this – with innocent members of the public and two police officers injured “as a direct result of their stupid and dangerous actions”.
Five bystanders were hit by cars, including one young woman whose legs were run over.
One group poured diesel across a street intersection in Palmerston North and set it alight, as one stunned bystander filmed the street on fire next to a Mobil petrol station.
“What the f*** are they doing down there?” can be heard in a video circulating of the incident.
“The gatherings involved a large convoy of vehicles and over 1000 individuals, which followed similar illegal activity in Levin last year that saw State Highway 1 barricaded and weapons reportedly present,” a combined local council statement said.
A scene from a boy-racer gathering in and around Levin last night. Photo / Social media
An attendee at last night’s Levin event, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Herald the event appeared to be “fine at first” but quickly escalated.
They said when police showed up, “There were loud shots of rubber pellets being shot and loud bangs followed by flashes” as the situation deteriorated.
The witness said they parked down the road from the event and noticed the “police weren’t playing nice”.
They claimed an officer pepper-sprayed a man trying to hop over a barrier, and hit another person with a baton.
The witness that while there were some troublemakers, most attendees said they just wanted to see some burnouts, “cause that’s what we love. We weren’t there to cause any trouble”.
A scene from a boyaracer meet in and around Levin last night. Photo / Social media
Local councils condemn overnight ‘invasions’
In a joint statement, Horowhenua District Council and Palmerston North City Council thanked police and emergency services for their “strong, co-ordinated response to unlawful gatherings in the region overnight”.
They said 10 arrests had been made so far, with more to come as police investigated footage from the event.
Police had acted early and deployed teams including riot police, armed offenders squad officers and the Eagle helicopter.
