Hutt Valley Police arrest illegal street racers

Police in the Hutt Valley have arrested four men and impounded three vehicles in relation to a dangerous driving incident last month.

The men, aged between 18 and 27 years, are facing charges of dangerous driving and sustained loss of traction in relation to an incident on the 12th of March.

Hutt Valley Area Commander Inspector Mike Hill says the four men facing charges were attending a funeral for a friend when they did burn-outs as the funeral procession made its way to Akatarawa Cemetery, at a time when schools were finishing for the day, placing the public at risk.

"As a result of significant enquiries made since the incident, search warrants were executed at addresses in Upper Hutt earlier this morning. As a result, we also located a quantity of cannabis and ammunition and recovered a stolen vehicle and some car parts."

One of the four arrested, a 21 year old Birchville male, also faces charges of cultivation of cannabis, possession of cannabis, possession of ammunition and theft of a vehicle, stolen from Stokes Valley earlier this week.

He says everyone in the Hutt Valley has the right to be safe and feel safe on our roads. We have said on a number of occasions that we will not tolerate illegal street racers in our community.

"We hope today's impoundments and arrests send a clear message to others that where we detect offending, we will investigate and prosecute. Whilst we may not make an arrest on the day of the alleged offending, we will find those responsible for offending and hold them accountable."

Inspector Hill says illegal street racers may claim that they have total control of their vehicles at all times when performing illegal and dangerous acts, but what they fail to understand is that they are one step away from making a fatal mistake.

"Holding a drivers license does not make anyone an expert driver able to define the laws of physics. We do not want any needless deaths or injuries on our roads and will continue to maintain an active presence to prevent road trauma in the Safe Hutt Valley."

The four men will appear in the Upper Hutt District Court in due course. Their vehicles have been impounded for 28 days, after which time their cars will be released once storage fees have been paid. The vehicles must also be examined by a testing station before being driven again.