Police officer drove 180kph without using siren to ‘catch up’ with motorist

A police officer caught driving at 182kph without activating his lights or siren said he was trying to catch up with a speeding motorist.

The Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) said on Tuesday it was notified of a police investigation into the officer after he was recorded by a police speed detection device driving at 182kph.

The IPCA said the officer claimed he was “driving urgently” on a long stretch of road to catch up with another motorist who was speeding ahead of him.

“An initial police assessment of the officer’s driving concluded the speed in which he had been travelling met the threshold for a charge of driving with excess speed as well as the suspension of his driving licence.

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“However, following a criminal investigation, a decision was made not to charge the officer. Instead, an employment process found that his actions were in breach of the Code of Conduct, and he received an employment outcome.”

The IPCA did not agree with the outcome and said the officer’s speed, regardless of whether he was urgent duty driving or not, was “dangerous and unjustified”.

The IPCA was also “critical” of the police investigation that failed to explore in detail the circumstances of the incident leading to the excessive speed.

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“Unfortunately, this matter was not notified to the authority until after the police investigation was completed, thus denying the authority the opportunity to oversee the investigation as part of its statutory function under the Independent Police Conduct Authority Act.”

A police spokesperson said police did not condone excessive speed unless it was required in “exceptional circumstances”.

“In this instance that threshold was not met, and the officer involved went through an employment process in relation to the incident.

“We acknowledge the matter ought to have been notified to the IPCA at an earlier point, and this learning has been taken on board by the staff involved.”

The officer involved was no longer employed by police, the spokesperson said.

Police confirmed the incident happened in the Tasman district. They were unable to comment on whether his licence was suspended.