Fatal crash driver hands himself in
Ayoung man who drove a car that crashed into a Christchurch school, killing a teenage passenger, has handed himself in to police. The man, claiming to be the driver, posted an emotional statement on Facebook, saying he was drunk and did not want to drive in the first place.
He said he was “so sorry, guys” and needed time to cope with what he had done, as he did not know until afterwards that someone had died. “I must pay,” he said.
It is understood the driver had been at large after the accident happened late on Friday night.
Police confirmed that a male was assisting officers in relation to the case and they were not looking for anyone else.
The 18-year-old passenger who died has been identified as Alexia Noble-Hazelwood.
Family and friends have paid tribute to “our beautiful angel” and set up a Givealittle page to help with funeral costs.
A family notice said NobleHazelwood was a beloved daughter to Angela and Denis and cherished sister to Kandie, Darson, Sharn, Shila and her twin brother Zackery.
Her funeral will be held on Thursday.
The teen is one of 10 people killed on New Zealand roads in the last four days.
The latest fatal crash was yesterday afternoon, when two people died after a crash on State Highway 1 near Foxton.
Joshua Smith, 32, died when the car he was a passenger in and a motorcyclist collided in Sydenham, Christchurch, about 11am on Friday.
Four motorcyclists were killed in three separate crashes on Saturday.
The first happened at 12.45pm at Isla Bank, Southland. Two people died as a result and a third suffered critical injuries.
The second occurred at 3.20pm on Henderson Valley Rd, West Auckland, when a motorcycle ran into a ditch.
Just after 4pm, another motorcyclist was killed on SH6 on the West Coast.
On Sunday morning, a person was killed in a crash near Okere Falls in Rotorua and about 4.30pm another person was killed when two vehicles flipped on SH1 south of Kawakawa.