Please attribute to Inspector Hirone Waretini, Christchurch Police
At about 4.20pm today, Police received reports of a man driving dangerously in the Waikari area, SH 7, Canterbury, South Island.
Many motorists called Police about his manner of driving, which included passing on blind corners, passing on double-yellow lines speeding and tail-gaiting.
The vehicle was located and Police signalled him to stop but he failed to do so. The driver then led police along SH7 and onto SH1 for 26 minutes.
The driver was spiked near the Waipara township and the tyres deflated however he continued to drive for a further eight kilometres south on SH1.
The driver then came to a stop near the Amberley township.
The driver got out of the vehicle with a baseball bat, threatened a parked motorist, a tourist to New Zealand, and stole his rental vehicle.
The offending driver then drove the stolen rental vehicle away again from Police.
This stolen car was later spiked in Tulls Road. Although the tyres deflated, he continued to drive for a further 11 kms before finally coming to rest in Revells Road, Tuahiwi.
For a second time, the driver got out of the car brandishing the baseball bat and threatened the attending Police staff. The driver was tasered by Police and finally subdued by a police dog. The duration of this pursuit lasting nearly one hour in total.
The offender received medical treatment after being arrested.
"The stolen rental vehicle sustained significant wheel rim damage but thankfully no members of the public or Police staff were injured in this violent driving episode. This manner of driving is complete madness at this time of the year, or at any time of the year and could have caused a great deal of carnage on our road if we had not stopped him - it's incredibly disappointing when people fail to stop for Police.
The man, aged 29 will be appearing in court on Monday 1st January 2018 and is facing serious charges which include aggravated robbery, assault with a weapon and driving charges.
ENDS
Issued by Police Media Centre