A fleeing driver in a stolen vehicle had to be restrained by police after running a red light and slamming into another car in Dunedin last night.
The crash happened when a Kia Sportage SUV collided with a Toyota Caldina station wagon at the Cumberland St intersection with lower Stuart St, in central Dunedin about 7.45pm.
The impact left both cars badly damaged, including the Kia, which Senior Sergeant Craig Brown said was believed to have been stolen from Kaka Point earlier in the evening.
The driver, a 55-year-old Balclutha man, initially appeared dazed while being assisted by police, but then had to be restrained by up to six officers during a tussle in the back of a police car.
Snr Sgt Brown said the man had been involved in another driving incident, near Beaumont, early on Tuesday, before allegedly stealing the Kia.
A police pursuit had just begun when last night's crash occurred, he said.
The driver of the Toyota Caldina, Bruce Peterson (63), of Dunedin, said he had been heading north on Cumberland St when he heard a siren and saw the Kia approaching at ‘‘a fair pace''.
‘‘He came through a red light with a police car coming up behind him. I tried to veer off, but it wasn't enough, obviously,'' Mr Peterson said.
Mr Peterson was carrying his dog Mitsy, an 11-year-old blue heeler/collie/ridgeback, in the car, but both he and the dog escaped injury and his vehicle was insured.
The offending driver appeared to be intoxicated, and police later told him the vehicle that struck him was stolen, Mr Peterson said.
Snr Sgt Brown said the 55-year-old was taken to Dunedin Hospital for assessment, and would be tested for drink-driving, and charges were likely.
Last night's crash was the second involving an allegedly stolen vehicle in Dunedin, Snr Sgt Brown said. At 5.40pm, a woman disturbed a group of intruders - three males and one female - at a property in Brownville Cres, Maori Hill, he said.
The group were believed to be in the process of committing a burglary, and left in a Nissan Sentra hatchback, only to crash into a power pole and then abandon the vehicle in Prospect Park, he said.
The group left the scene and were yet to be located. The car was believed to have been stolen from Christchurch earlier in the week. Snr Sgt Brown said.
