Police pelted with rocks at burnout gathering
Two police officers were injured and two police vehicles were damaged during a gathering of more than 200 cars in Levin on Saturday night.
More than 30 police officers were deployed to the area.
“Police were pelted with rocks and bottles, injuring two officers and damaging two police vehicles during anti-social road user activity in Levin overnight,” Manawatu Area Commander Inspector Ross Grantham said.
“Six cars were impounded, one person was arrested for disorderly behaviour, and another was arrested for obstruction.”
The activities began around 8pm on Saturday when the vehicles met at the intersection of Queen St and State Highway 57 in Levin to attempt burnouts.
“Police staff managed to disrupt the activity and move them on, but not before patrol cars were kicked by bystanders, who also threw bottles at the cars,” Grantham said.
A man arrested for obstruction was found to have a flick-knife.
“The group then moved to Miro St in Otaki, where they proceeded to do more burnouts. Police chose to avoid actively engaging at this location, given it was an industrial cul de sac which would have posed further risk to our staff.
“The group then headed back to Levin, to the intersection of State Highway 57 and Tavistock Rd, where they blocked the road and did more burnouts.
“A police patrol attempted to drive through the group to disrupt them, however, the observing crowd turned on the officers, kicking and bottling the car. The side window of the patrol vehicle was smashed.”
Police attempts at dispersing the crowds using protective shields were met with violence as people started throwing bottles, rocks, and bricks at police.
Two police officers suffered minor injuries from some items that hit their legs.
“A man arrested during this time for disorderly behaviour was allegedly wearing a stab-proof vest and carrying a large knife,” Grantham added.
“This is incredibly concerning, as it indicates that the crowd was not just car enthusiasts, but included people out to deliberately provoke, aggravate, and endanger.”
Grantham said that police did not engage with anti-social driving behaviours like burnouts and only observed them from a distance in order to ensure the safety of the officers involved. However, he added, the footage collected during the events would be used to follow up on any illegal behaviour.