Southland Area Commander Inspector Mike Bowman told the Otago Daily Times a baby was in the vehicle that crashed, who was ‘‘thankfully’’ uninjured.
He said police were not aware the baby was in the pursued car before spiking its tyres.
The chase began on December 2 about 5pm in Invercargill when police went to speak to a man about a driving issue.
The man then fled in his car, Insp Bowman said in a statement on Tuesday night.
He said a police pursuit was authorised, but abandoned after the escaping man’s driving deteriorated.
Officers had used their training and co-ordinated their response, which allowed other units to get in place ahead of the vehicle, he said at the time.
About an hour later, the car ran over spikes south of Winton, on State Highway 6, near McKenzie Rd.
It then crashed into a water table in McKenzie Rd.
On Tuesday night, police said the man suffered only minor injuries, and the two others in the car were uninjured.
Yesterday, they confirmed there was a baby in the vehicle.
They would be conducting a review into the circumstances of the incident, as was standard procedure when spikes were deployed, he said.
Police said a 32-year-old was charged with several driving offences in relation to the incident and was due to appear in the Invercargill District Court next week.
A 30-year-old woman, who is facing drug charges and a charge of burglary, is due in court the following week.
