Police can now name the man who died in a single vehicle crash yesterday (1 March, 2014) afternoon at the corner of SH2 and Makirikiri Road, near Dannevirke.
He was Daniel Troy Leslie, aged 31, of Waipukurau.
There were three occupants in the Holden Commodore and Mr Leslie was the front seat passenger.
As the Commodore was leaving Dannevirke a police unit has clocked the vehicle on their radar doing 124 km/h in a 50 km/h zone.
The officer activated their lights and siren and had to wait a few moments for passing traffic before they could safely perform a U-turn and signal to the vehicle to pull over.
“By the time the officer had initiated the U-turn the Commodore was far out of sight. The officer has driven about 1 kilometre down the road which enters a 70 km/h zone. They have then located the vehicle which had hit a power pole on the opposite side of the road,” says Acting Central District Commander, Inspector Pat Handcock.
The attending officers and Fire Service staff gave first aid to Mr Leslie and the other two occupants, however despite their best efforts Mr Leslie died at the scene.
The driver and passenger sustained minor injuries and were seen to by Ambulance staff.
Preliminary indications suggest that speed was a factor and the driver had failed to navigate a right hand bend in the road. Police also believe alcohol may have been another factor to the crash.
“The Serious Crash Unit is continuing to investigate the crash and charges against the driver are likely. Officers are also in the process of speaking to witnesses including the driver and rear seat passenger of the Commodore,” says Inspector Handcock.
Police has no further comment on this matter at this stage.
Media enquiries should be referred to Communications Manager Sara Stavropoulos on 027 702 0850.