Desperate measures

A suspected drunk driver went to extraordinary lengths to avoid being caught by police and jumped into a stream after abandoning his car, writes Leighton Keith.

As the teenager approached a breath testing checkpoint on New Plymouth’s Carrington Rd on Friday night, he swerved to the side of the road, mounted the footpath and crashed his mother’s car into a lamp post, Sergeant Pat Duffy said.

‘‘As police approached, the driver ran off into the bush, abandoning his passenger, and jumped into the nearby Huatoki Stream, submerging himself under the water in an attempt to hide,’’ Duffy said.

‘‘The stream would have been somewhat cold after the recent cold snap.’’

The alleged offender didn’t last long in the water and was soon in custody after police noticed his cap floating downstream.

Duffy said he would like to be a fly on the wall when the 19-year-old tried to explain to his mother what had happened to her car.

‘‘That was somewhat dramatic and in the end, completely pointless,’’ he said.

‘‘A damaged car, now no insurance, a potential dose of hypothermia, his submerged cell phone, and for what?’’

‘‘It was a series of dumb choices because of alcohol.’’

Huatoki Stream runs through the middle of New Plymouth. It is well known for its very tame and very large eels.

The teenager is due to appear in the New Plymouth District Court on May 10 facing alcohol and driving charges.