Stolen car in crash just as police spot it

WELLINGTON - A stolen car crashed near Wellington yesterday just as police began to give chase, a day after a youth died during a pursuit.

An officer on patrol near Plimmerton spotted the car about 1.30 am. It had been reported stolen from Tawa earlier in the night.

Inspector Brent Craig said the officer had turned on his lights and siren and only just begun the pursuit when the crash happened.

The driver of the vehicle and his passenger suffered minor injuries and were treated at the scene by ambulance staff.

The accident follows a crash on the outskirts of Palmerston North early on Thursday after police gave chase to a group found inside a city tyre business.

Troy Steven Harper, aged 18, died after the crash on Napier Rd. One passenger, Fraser Joseph Callaghan, 17, was in a stable condition in Palmerston North Hospital after undergoing surgery.

The other, Matthew Greg Holmes, 16, was in a satisfactory condition.

Fraser Callaghan's mother, Trisha Callaghan, has questioned whether police needed to chase the three, who drove off at speed after being disturbed at the burglary scene.

"They chased them at high speeds, which they shouldn't have done. They should have backed off and that boy wouldn't have died and my son wouldn't be in hospital with surgery," she told One Network News.

Two police cars pursued the vehicle for about 6km with lights and sirens going, but the car failed to stop.

During the pursuit, the driver turned his car lights off several times, according to police.

Ms Callaghan said the pursuit shouldn't have happened.

"I think it's a disgrace that they chased those boys ... They're good boys. They [police] knew those boys - they're well known about town."

Police are investigating the burglary and crash, and breach of bail conditions by one of the trio.

The Police Complaints Authority is investigating the crash but Mr Craig said it was unlikely a similar investigation would be held into the Wellington crash.

The Police Complaints Authority normally investigated only when a police chase resulted in serious injuries or death, he said.

The pursuit early yesterday had lasted "just a matter of minutes," he said.

A 16-year-old male was due to appear in the Porirua District Court charged with unlawfully taking a vehicle, dangerous driving, failing to stop for police and theft from a motor vehicle.

A 20-year-old man will appear on a charge of unlawfully getting into a stolen motor vehicle, and outstanding warrants.

According to police operational guidelines, a pursuit should be abandoned if it poses an "immediate and serious" risk to the safety of any person that exceeds the risk for which the pursuit was initiated.

Officers should be able to "honestly and reasonably" say they believed they could pursue without increasing danger.

- NZPA