Last year, Wilson drove his Volkswagen ute into the opposite lane on Maranui St, into the path of an oncoming Jeep containing two parents and their three children.
Both vehicles were extensively damaged in the head-on collision but Wilson managed to free himself.
He picked up debris from the crash and tools that fell out of his ute, then fled the scene on foot after seeing the extent of damage to the victim’s vehicle.
The parents were trapped in the front seats of the Jeep and had to be freed by emergency services staff. They, along with two of the children in the rear seat, suffered significant injuries, the summary said.
The Jeep driver had surgery for a fractured and dislocated wrist and spent three days in hospital.
The injured driver was later convicted for having an excess blood alcohol reading at the time of the crash, the court heard.
The Crown summary said his front-seat passenger was knocked unconscious and sustained a fractured nasal bone, a rib fracture, an internal brain bleed and a severed liver, spending six days in hospital.
The two injured children also spent time in hospital.
Wilson was identified as the ute driver after a bloodstained sample of the driver’s seat airbag was analysed by ESR — the Institute of Environmental Science and Research — which found the DNA matched his.
A witness to the crash also picked Wilson out of a photo montage.
Police found a Remington 12-gauge shotgun, eight rounds of .303 calibre ammunition and 14 rounds of .22 calibre ammunition inside the crashed ute. Wilson did not hold a current firearms licence.
Two days after the crash, Wilson called the police to report his ute had been stolen, then on April 26 contacted his insurance company and filed a stolen or burnt vehicle claim form.
Three days later, the defendant visited Tauranga police station and made a false written statement about the alleged theft of his vehicle and he was arrested, the summary said.
In court, Wilson’s lawyer Mike Douglas successfully sought a further adjournment to enable his client to find an address where he could possibly serve a home detention sentence.
Crown prosecutor Larissa Mulder did not oppose the adjournment.
Judge David Cameron bailed Wilson pending sentencing in October, but he gave the defendant no guarantee of the sentencing outcome.
Sandra Conchie is a senior journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post who has been a journalist for 24 years. She mainly covers police, court and other justice stories, as well as general news. She has been a Canon Media Awards regional/community reporter of the year.
