Attribute to: Senior Sergeant David Raffan
A fleeing moped rider barked up the wrong tree after a Police dog tracked him to his hiding spot, where officers found loaded firearms, drugs and a protective vest in his backpack.
The 38-year-old grabbed attention after pulling out in front of a police car on Peachgrove Road, Hamilton at about 6.55 this morning. The moped had been spraypainted and its licence plate covered up.
He took off when the red and blue lights were deployed, then abandoned the stolen moped in a residential area and continued the getaway on foot.
The Police dog unit tracked him through the area, briefly losing the trail as the pursuit crossed a public space, but it wasn’t long before the scent was picked up again.
The dog rooted out the man hiding beneath a tree on Ascot Road, with officers finding a loaded shot gun and pistol, ammunition, drugs, drug paraphernalia, and a protective vest in the man’s backpack.
The man, from Ōtara, will appear in Hamilton District Court on 25 August facing charges of unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, failing to stop and unlawful take of a motor vehicle.
Police say this person went to considerable lengths to avoid Police, but he was unable to outrun the Police dog team.
Given what was subsequently found in his backpack, Police are pleased these items are off the street and the man was taken into custody without further incident.
The Police are working to return the moped to the rightful owner.
