Senior Sergeant Fiona Roberts said two motorists face prosecution - including one who tried to flee from an alcohol checkpoint.
That driver had eventually been arrested for obstruction and driving-related offending, she said.
“Any incident on the road where driving behaviour is putting other people’s lives at risk is pretty concerning - and the fact that we’ve had two here in the last 10 days has been disappointing.”
Snr Sgt Roberts said while some may assume a fleeing driver would simply “drive off into the distance” once a pursuit was abandoned, the two incidents in Wānaka proved this was not the case.
“We’ll go and find them and it’s generally on our terms and they’ll be held to account, for sure.”
There were no reported injuries or collisions in either incident.
Elsewhere on Wānaka’s roads this week, police responded to reports of a vehicle losing control at the roundabout on the intersection of Aubrey and Anderson Rds.
Snr Sgt Roberts said the vehicle failed to take the corner and crashed through a fence nearby.
Officers attending that incident performed a breath test on the driver and subsequently issued them with an infringement notice for exceeding the legal breath alcohol limit.
Meanwhile, police were responding to a “steady flow” of family harm reports, ranging from verbal arguments to psychological and physical harm.
Although it was good people were choosing to report incidents, Snr Sgt Roberts said the level of offending in some instances was troubling.
“People have been remanded in custody and facing some serious charges, and protection orders have been issued - so it’s certainly prevalent.”
One incident was related to historic family harm matters, including an alleged assault on a person in a family relationship, and the alleged offender was being prosecuted, she said.
In a separate incident, a Wānaka man has been charged with threatening to kill or do grievous bodily harm, refusing to give blood following a driving offence and possession of an offensive weapon. He had been remanded in custody, Snr Sgt Roberts said.
Police would have a presence alongside other emergency services at Wānaka’s Matariki event on Friday, where organisers were expecting a crowd of about 1500.
Snr Sgt Roberts said the long weekend was one to celebrate, but encouraged everyone to do so responsibly.
“Enjoy yourself and be safe. Make good decisions.”
- By Regan Harris
