A 17 year-old male was arrested overnight after stealing a forklift and driving it up Queen Street, Auckland.
The male stole the forklift from a construction yard in central Auckland and then travelled the wrong way down Darby Street and onto Queen Street where he was seen by Police and directed to stop.
The driver failed to stop and officers gave chase on foot. After seeing he was being chased the driver has swerved trying to hit the officers who have had to jump out of the way to avoid injury.
The two chasing officers have then climbed into the cab of the forklift and removed the driver while a third officer has applied the brakes to stop the forklift and avoid a collision with a parked car.
The forklift driver was arrested at the scene and has been charged with burglary, unlawful taking, dangerous driving and two charges of aggravated assault. He will be appearing in Auckland District Court this morning.
ENDS
Issued by Police Media Centre