Higgins hater hits cones at speed

A driver fed up with a roading company’s work decided to take out his frustration by speeding through a work site.

Quinn Caleb Archer pleaded guilty in the Palmerston North District Court yesterday to charges, including assaulting his grandfather and stealing pies from a shop. But it was two driving incidents that made up the bulk of the prosecution.

The first took place on the afternoon of August 10, when he was driving along Kimbolton Rd, Feilding.

He was stopped by police after people complained about his driving. Archer had driven through a coned-off area of the road at 70kmh, despite signs saying the speed limit was 30kmh.

He rammed about 15 road cones, which were set up across 150 metres.

He told police he hated road construction company Higgins, as they ‘‘didn’t know how to build roads’’. Palmerston North-based Higgins was bought by Fletcher Building in 2016 for $315 million.

Archer got into more driving trouble on September 4, when he was driving a BMW along Stoney Creek Rd towards Bunnythorpe. He failed to take the right-hand bend on to Ashhurst Rd, driving into a guard rail. If the rail had not been there, he would have crashed into a power substation.

The rail ended up going through the windscreen, hitting Archer in the head. He was taken to hospital, where a blood sample was taken showing he had methamphetamine and THC – the primary psychoactive found in cannabis – in his system.

He told police he did not remember much about the incident because he was upset after visiting a friend’s grave.

Archer was bailed until November for sentencing.