Family’s car hit by hurled bottle: ‘It was terrifying’

A man driving with his wife and daughter says he feels lucky to be alive after a bottle was hurled at his vehicle from a passing car.

Peter Walters was travelling north from Napier near Raupunga when a car came towards them with a man standing on the door sill, holding on to the inside.

“I said, ‘Look at this idiot’ and then he hurled a large bottle that looked like a Steinlager bottle straight at us. He was aiming for our main window and lucky for us it hit the corner post,” Walters said.

“It totally smashed the driver’s window. Honestly, we were so lucky it hit the driver’s side. It exploded all over us. We so easily could have been killed.”

The incident happened about 4.45pm. Both cars would have been travelling about 100km/h, Walters said.

That person was aiming for our main window. He was out to kill us. Peter Walters

“It was terrifying. It is totally unacceptable to have something like this happen. That person was aiming for our main window. He was out to kill us.”

The white, four-door car looked to be full and the person who threw the bottle had a balaclava over his face.

Walters wanted to let people know about the incident so they could be aware.

“It was definitely premeditated. I was too busy looking at the idiot to notice too much about the car.”

Walters immediately phoned 111 and called in to the Wairoa police station, but it was after hours and there was not much police could do.

His car was a mess, he said, with broken glass through it and dents on the bodywork.

“My wife and daughter have just been in some of the most dangerous parts of the world, and then we drive through a tinpot town like Raupunga and nearly get killed.”

Wairoa police said they were investigating the incident.

“We have a detailed description of the offending vehicle,” Detective Sergeant Daniel Kirk said.

“Police patrols were sent out immediately after the matter was reported in search of that vehicle. We are following a strong line of inquiry.”